Alone Together
by TeeBeMe
Summary: At some point, Izabera is going to have to admit out loud that her friends are a bunch of psychotic morons. And she's going to have to admit that she wouldn't have it any other way, no matter how cheesy that sounds. AU. Series of oneshots.
1. Halloween

_In which the Host Club forcibly takes a nineteen year old trick or treating and she wonders which God she could have possibly pissed off._

* * *

In an upscale apartment somewhere in Japan, a lone brunette sat swaddled in blankets with a large textbook settled in her lap. She was frowning softly as her eyes scanned the page, drinking in the information she needed to remember in order for the test next week. A sudden shrill ringing shocked the girl out of her focus. She jumped and slipped right off of the couch. Groaning loudly from the floor, she reached up to the coffee table sitting in front of the couch and snatched the phone up.

"What."

"Busy-Bee!" Fumiko hummed, ignoring the clearly annoyed tone of voice her cousin had taken with her. "What are you doing?" Fumiko was probably smiling brightly. Izzy sighed into the floor, she had a feeling Fumiko was about to really irk her.

"I'm trying to study for my test."

Fumiko let out a huff. "That's all you're ever doing when I call you," She whined. Fumiko couldn't even recall the last time she had seen her older cousin. She knew college was pretty busy compared to high school, but that didn't mean she didn't have to lock herself away in her apartment and ignore life! Her cousin needed to get out.

"What do you want, Fu?"

"Oh! Yeah. That's right. We were wondering what you and Mori-Senpai are doing on Friday."

"I don't know. Going to class?"

Fumiko let out another noise, although it sounded more like a horrified gasp. "Izzy! Don't you know what Friday is?!" Fumiko demanded shrilly. When she heard her cousin mumble 'no', she shook her head. "Friday is Halloween!" Fumiko reminded Izzy with that same shrill voice of hers. Izzy sighed heavily for a second time, massaging her temples as she tried to figure out what Halloween had to do with anything.

"...So? I've never celebrated Halloween before."

"Oh my God..."

Izzy blinked as the dial tone blared in her ear. She pulled the cellphone to her face, frowning when she realized that Fumiko actually hung up on her. "Was hanging up necessary?" She mumbled to herself, not even taking notice of the front door open.

"What are you doing on the floor?"

She squeaked out and looked up towards the door, laughing nervously as Morinozuka Takashi stared down at her. "Hello, _amore_," She smiled at him as he tilted his head to the side. He moved closer towards her, leaning down low enough to help her up.

"...Aren't you supposed to be studying?"

* * *

It was literally two hours later when there was a knock at the door. Both Mori and Izzy glanced up, frowning. "I swear to God, if this is that kid from down the hall again, I'm going to wash his mouth out with soap..." Izzy grumbled as she pushed herself up. She had had it up to here with that foul-mouthed fourteen year old who had the biggest crush on her and usually hit on her with vulgar pick up lines.

She swung the front door open and as quickly as she opened it, she slammed it shut. Mori blinked at her, watching as her back tensed. "Who was it?"

"No one!"

"Izzzzzzzzzzzy!"

Mori regarded her blankly as she sighed heavily. "Please don't make me open the door, Takashi. I'm never going to get anything done if you do," She glanced over her shoulder, a panicked expression taking over her face. Oh, but she knew, _she knew_, that she was going to have to let them in. If not, they would cause such a ruckus that someone would complain.

"They'll eventually get in on their own."

Izzy groaned and rested her forehead against the door. What in God's name had she done to deserve this? All she wanted was to study for her upcoming test. Slumping her shoulders in defeat, she opened the door and quickly hurried back to her spot on the couch. "That was rude, Izzy..." Kaoru grumbled as he stepped into the living room of the apartment. Izzy only offered a blank look. "I told you she would slam the door shut. She has no manners, honestly..." Hikaru scoffed, shaking his head.

"Izzy!" Fumiko squealed, breaking off of Kyoya to run and jump on her older cousin. The brunette squeaked out from under her blankets and Fumiko's body. Haruhi snorted in humor as Izzy stayed under her blankets but began to childishly whine.

"Let Uncle join!" Tamaki practically squealed and jumped onto the pile. Izzy let out another squeak and quickly began to shout in Italian. Although none of them knew what she was saying, they knew she meant business when she started to scream in her first language. The tall blond quickly scrambled off of the pile. Fumiko rolled to the seat next to Izzy and the brunette popped up from underneath the blanket. She ran her fingers through her bangs, pushing them out of her line of vision as she fixed them all with a glare.

"What the hell do you guys want?"

"Izzy has gotten so much meaner since she left Ouran. How do you deal with her, Mori-Senpai?" Hikaru and Kaoru whined in sync with one another. Izzy scoffed and rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her chest.

Mori looked at her, a twinkle of amusement dancing in his eyes. "Her bite isn't as bad as her bark," He reached over to settle his large hand on her head. "She's harmless," He added on thoughtfully as she rolled her eyes. His hand slid down to cup her face and she smiled before shaking her head.

"So," Haruhi clapped her hands together. "You guys dragged me here for a reason, remember? Go on, tell her why she's going to glare at you again," Haruhi motioned for them to reveal the real reason why they had showed up unannounced. Izzy quirked her eyebrow while Mori only tilted his head to the side. There was always a reason why they did the things they did.

"Fufu told us some horrible news!"

"Did someone die?"

"Well, no."

"Then it's not horrible, is it?"

Tamaki shot Izzy a look and she grinned sheepishly and opted for him to continue. "She told us that you've never celebrated Halloween before. Is that true, Izzy? Have you really never celebrated such a fun holiday?"

Izzy blinked, she had been expecting them to come here for a different reason. Not because she hadn't celebrated some silly holiday that was popular in America. "Well, no. I've never celebrated it. Halloween is a pagan holiday, I'm catholic. Instead we celebrate All Saints Eve and _Carnevale. _It's the closest we'll get to it."

Tamaki sprang forward by the time she was finished talking, yanking her to his chest in a suffocating hug. "You poor, poor soul. What kind of childhood is that?" He began to stroke her hair in what he thought a soothing motion. However, all it did was cause the back of her head to look like a bird's nest.

"Would you get off of me!" Izzy demanded, freeing one of her hands to go in for an attack. Tamaki pouted and cried animated tears as he laid on the floor after Izzy viciously slapped him away. "My childhood was fine, thank you," She huffed girlishly. "Listen, I grew up with a different culture than the rest of you, alright? That doesn't mean my childhood was a wreck."

Kyoya hummed in what Izzy assumed was agreement. "You're probably not going to like this next part then," He continued to hum in a casual voice. Izzy looked at him, he didn't have to tell her that. They both knew she was not going to like the real reason they were here.

"I tried to talk them out of it..." Haruhi rubbed the back of her neck. Izzy wondered blankly her brunette best friend really tried it her all. "But you know how they are once they get an idea..." Haruhi added on. Yeah, she also knew Haruhi was when they got an idea.

She turned towards Tamaki and the twins, waiting for them to lay it on her. "Izzy, get ready! Come Friday, we're taking you trick or treating!" the three of them seemed to have rehearsed that perfectly because they said it together with ease. The living room was quiet, Izzy was at a loss for words. And then Mori broke it by laughing. Well, it was more of a snort. Like the type of snorting laughs that usually came from Haruhi when she thought everyone was being particularly stupid.

Izzy looked at her boyfriend, eyes narrowed. He didn't even bother to mask the laughter as she continued to glare at him. Shaking her head, she turned towards Kyoya. "Why do you keep letting them come up with ideas?" She asked simply, eyebrow twitching every now and then. Kyoya only smirked at her and casually shrugged. He left them to come up with these ideas because he loved seeing her being tortured.

"I'm a grown woman. I am not going trick or treating."

"Yes you are."

"Excuse me? And who–"

She was stopped by Mori before she could go off in a wild rant. "I think it's a good idea," He stated simply, fingertips brushing through her thick hair. She snapped around to look at him as if he grew another head in the span of two seconds.

"Good idea? No, it really isn't! You're supposed to be on my side."

"You've been stressed out lately. Spending time with them and having fun will be good for you. You need a break," He held up her heavy textbook and placed it back down on the table. "And everyone misses you as well," Mori stated seriously. She knew by the tone of his voice that he would not budge on where he stood when it came to this silly situation.

Izzy childishly pouted, folding her arms across her chest for added affect. Fumiko was grinning, glad that Mori had been on their side. If anyone could get Izzy to do something, it was Mori. And vice-verse. They really were a good couple.

"You are such a traitor."

* * *

The days leading up to Halloween seemed to go horribly for Izzy. It was just one bad day after another. She had gotten caught in the rain, twice, one of her Professors had misplaced her paper, she had spilled hot coffee into her lap, ripped one of her favorite shirts and lost her cellphone.

By the time she was finished with her classes on Halloween, Izzy just wanted to lay under her blanket and just sleep the whole week off. Or maybe take a hot bubble bath. She had completely forgotten she even had plans later that day. The brunette sluggishly kicked off her wedges, climbing into her bed and just collapsing. She didn't even bother to dig herself under the blanket. She simply laid there, eyes closed as her shoulders began to slump.

An hour or so later, the bedroom door opened and the bed sank with added weight. She awoke out of her light slumber immediately, glancing over her shoulder to see Mori. "Hi, love," She mumbled sleepily into the mattress.

He greeted her before laying his body over hers, his face snuggled into her neck. He was careful not to put his full weight on her lest he wanted to crush her. "Still cranky?" He asked, lips brushing against her neck. They didn't have any classes together but they made it a point to see each other in between classes.

When he had seen her earlier after his third class and her second, she had been nearly in tears with a torn shirt. For a moment he had assumed the worst and she had to physically pull on his arm to restrain him before he ran off to beat up some poor, innocent bystander. She had told him about not only her horrible day, but horrible week in general.

"No," She sighed into the mattress. "I'm just tired. I'm glad this week is over and I can just sleep all day and relax tomorrow and Sunday," She continued to speak, smiling tiredly when she felt his fingers trail under her shirt to draw imaginary patterns in her side.

He hummed against her skin and pressed his lips against her neck. She stiffened from under him. "I think you're forgetting something today," He spoke against her skin, causing her to shiver. She made a noise, what had she forgotten? The day was over, she didn't have any plans to go see Hisa or her Aunt. "Trick or treating."

Izzy groaned into her pillow, forgetting all about the silly Host Club's mission to take _(force)_ her trick or treating. Honestly, was it really a big deal? She didn't even like candy like that! And why on God's green Earth was Mori going along with this?

"You have got to be kidding me," She huffed. "I'm not getting out of this bed. I don't care what you or anyone else has to say," Izzy hissed, glaring at him from the corner of her eye. "Not even God himself will get me out of bed! I don't care! Stop touching me!"

* * *

"...Why aren't you wearing shoes?"

Izzy simply glared daggers at Mori, who carried on as if she wasn't glaring holes into the side of his face. "Izzy has arrived!" Tamaki squealed, flinging himself at the brunette. She expertly slipped to the side, watching with no remorse as he crashed into the wall and slid to the floor. She leaned over to peer at the blond, frowning.

"How many times do you have to kiss the floor before you realize you'll never get me with those flying hugs of yours?" She asked with a blank face. All Tamaki could do was sob.

"Izzy!" Hikaru and Kaoru took the distracted girl by surprise, seizing her by her shoulders. She blinked, squeaking when they hefted her up and ran her to the back area of the room. "Your costume is in there!" They sung out, shoving her into the backroom.

"Oh! Izzy is here!" Fumiko clapped her hands as the twins shut the door. Haruhi turned towards Izzy, offering her a smile as she turned to glare at the door.

"You guys are dressing up as well?" Izzy asked with mild surprise. Well, Fu dressing up didn't really surprise her. The fact that Haruhi had agreed is what surprised her. She would've thought that Haruhi would have put up more a fight.

"Everyone is dressing up," Haruhi shrugged, turning back around. Izzy frowned, wondering what in the world Haruhi would dress up as. From where she was standing she could only see that whatever Haruhi's costume was, it was blue. Heaving heavy shoulders and realizing she couldn't get out of this, she moved towards the outfit that was left for her. She looked it over and blushed heavily. They could not be serious. This...this was so inappropriate..

Just as she was about to turn around, Fumiko tapped her shoulder. "It's only for one night, Izzy. Halloween is when we can dress up something out of character and it's alright. Just have fun, okay?"

"How the hell am I supposed to have fun in this!?"

* * *

"Izzy, if you don't come out right now we're going to send Mori-Senpai in there after you," Tamaki called through the door. Fumiko and Haruhi had emerged nearly five minutes ago dressed in their costumes without Izzy in tow. Fumiko was dressed as an undead Geisha with smeared makeup and rips and tears in her once beautiful white and black kimono. Haruhi, on the other hand, was dressed as Alice from Alice in Wonderland complete with the signature blue dress, black headband, white and blue striped stockings paired with black Mary Janes.

"No! I refuse! This isn't fair, Fu and Haruhi's costumes weren't as revealing as this! What the hell are you guys trying to prove? Who goes trick or treating in an outfit like this?" She hissed through the door. Tamaki blinked, turning to the twins. What costume had they given her? He glanced at Mori but his former upperclassmen seemed as clueless as everyone else but the twins. Hikaru sidled up to the door, a Cheshire grin gracing his face.

"It's because you're older. Haruhi has the cute costume and Fufu-Chan has the scary costume. So, that left you to have the mature costume. You have the right physique for it."

"Our Mother gave us these specific costumes after we told her about today. We didn't pick them out, she did," Kaoru pointed out, chuckling when he heard Izzy begin to mutter in Italian. They can hear her shuffling around and waited for her to come out.

"I'm not coming out."

Tamaki sighed. "Well, I suppose it's time for Mori-Senpai to kick the door down then, isn't it?" He sounded like he really didn't want to command such an order but Izzy knew better. "Mori-Senpai, if you will..."

"W-Wait! I swear to God, Takashi, if you kick this door down you are going to have Hell to pay!"

"Then open the door."

"I hate you, I hate you so much, Takashi."

"No, you don't."

The giant smirked when he heard the brunette curse in Italian. He had spent enough time with her to know when she was being particularly vulgar in her own language. He had also spent enough time with her to know that when she began to curse in her Italian, she had lost the battle.

The door swung open almost violently to reveal an evil-faced Izabera. "I hate all of you," She hissed with venom dripping off of every word. She was dressed as a witch. The dress was slick, clinging to her body like second skin. The neckline plunged low with criss-cross stitching, revealing what she deemed as too much cleavage and there was a very long slit up the side of the dress. She had a pair of black heels on with a pointy witch hat.

"Wow," Fumiko blinked. The twins really weren't kidding when they said Izzy had the physique for that outfit. Izzy began to tap her foot, cocking her hip out and folding her arms across her chest. Fumiko almost snorted. Folding her arms didn't help. She glanced at Mori, and with a giggle, realized he was probably thinking something similar along those lines.

"I am so beyond offended," Izzy huffed as she glared at the twins specifically. "You guys dressed me as a witch, of all things! Excuse me but I am _catholic_! You're lucky I don't have a bag or I'd be beating you with it!"

Tamaki laughed nervously, he had been a victim of her beatings many times. "But my niece, you look lovely!" He exclaimed loudly. He was dressed in white and gold as a King. Kyoya had pointed out that Tamaki shouldn't have been something so..._Tamaki_ but the blond had ignored him. "Right, Mori-Senpai?"

Izzy only glared at Tamaki but turned to Mori. The giant eyed her quietly for several seconds, his eyes revealing nothing. Izzy titled her head to the side, curious as to what he would say. Finally, he chose to open his mouth.

"You're not going out like that."

* * *

One way or another, they managed to convince the couple on the outfit. Izzy had only relented after the twins had given her a black cloak. Even after that, Mori was clearly put off by the revealing attire. Not that she looked bad in it. She looked good in it. Too good. Nonetheless, they took Izzy on an adventure, going house to house asking for candy. Granted, the people giving out candy were a little surprised to see a bunch of teenagers at their door but they got their candy anyway.

Although there was one point where two teenage boys expressed interest in both Fumiko and Izzy's costume. Haruhi had been busily yelling at the twins and Tamaki for whatever reason. Fumiko had blushed heavily as the blatant attention she was receiving while Izzy simply shoved her Halloween basket at them. "Trick or treat."

"Oh, I've a got trick for ya."

And then Mori swooped in, effortlessly lifting Izzy and giving the two boys a dark look. Izzy only blinked in question as she was literally carried off. Being more refined than the former Wild Host, Kyoya simply grabbed Fumiko by her waist and calmly led her away, shooting a death-like stare over his shoulder.

The night continued on as they gathered candy and got into shenanigans that only the Host Club could get into. A little girl dressed as a Princess had claimed Tamaki as her King and her Mother had chased the blond, shouting for the 'pedophile' to get away from her daughter. Several young girls had approached Kyoya, who was dressed as a vampire, and had asked him if he was willing to bite them. Izzy always thought it was so funny to see Fumiko lose her cool over Kyoya.

Hikaru and Kaoru had played a prank on Izzy, popping out of the darkness to scare her. She chased them for two blocks before finally capturing them and hitting them over the head with her Halloween basket. Without having Hani around_ (he hadn't been able to come home in time for Halloween)_ Mori kept an eye on the girls. And Haruhi, well, she remained unaffected by all of the wackiness.

And although she really didn't want to admit it, Izzy had more fun then she thought possible on this silly holiday. Although she didn't really eat candy, she found herself picking through the basket. By the end of the night, she had discarded the heels. Instead, Mori carried her piggyback to her apartment without any complaints to keep her off of her aching feet.

The Hosts were sad to be separated from their big sister and Mori so soon but she promised to spend more time with them on Sunday after she slept Saturday away. They had really missed spending time with her ever since she, Hani and Mori graduated. Knowing Kyoya would get her cousin home safely, she left with Mori. She was quiet the entire time Mori carried her back home, opting to pepper the back of his neck with candy-coated lips. If it bothered the giant, he didn't show it.

She dropped face-first on her bed as soon as they made it back to her apartment. While she did have fun, she was now utterly exhausted. Her basket of candy was placed next to her while she carelessly tossed the heels aside somewhere. Her feet were killing her, why the hell hadn't she worn flats? Seconds later, Mori's heavier body settled on top of hers as he did earlier when she came home from classes. "Cranky?" He asked, but she could hear the joking tone in his voice. She snorted and shifted into a more comfortable position.

"I actually had fun," Izzy stated into the pillow after several long seconds of just listening to him breathing. He hummed, knowing she had fun even if she hadn't admitted it. "I wish Hani had been home from school to join us. He would've eaten all my candy by now.." She laughed, realizing just how much she missed her friends.

Mori chuckled, rolling onto his side and pulling Izzy along with him. She felt his fingers tamper with the criss-cross stitching keeping her dress cinched closed. Teeth nibbled at her earlobe and she tried to sidle away but we restricted by a strong arm locking around her waist. Laughing, she rolled onto her back and pulled the front of his shirt to get him to come closer. With a smile, she boldly caught his lips. Her lips tasted like candy, exploding against his lips in a sugary backlash. He bit down on her bottom lip, liking the sound of her moaning underneath.

She dug her nails into the back of his neck as the kisses became deeper, hungrier and more passionate. Her nails scrapped against his neck and up to his jaw. Just as his hands pulled at her dress, Izzy leaned away with a funny look on her face.

Mori frowned, noticing the odd look immediately. Before he could question the brunette, she rolled from underneath him. Izzy sat up, glancing around her bedroom. Her eyes landed on the Halloween basket filled with candy. She slipped to the side of the bed and grabbed the basket of candy before searching through it and popping a piece of chocolate in her mouth.

Mori only regarded her blankly. He moved towards her, sitting on the side of the bed next to her as she continued to unwrap the pieces of candy and popped them in her mouth. He could've sworn she wasn't a big fan of sweets, last time he checked. She glanced at him, hazel eyes sparkling in amused mischief. But she said nothing as she ate yet another piece of candy. Noticing his blank expression, an amused grin spread across her candy-stained lips.

"Happy Halloween, _mi amore_."

* * *

TeeBeMe: Well, I did say I would try to get a Halloween oneshot out. Did you guys like it, I hope so. I'm sure that now Halloween is probably celebrated in Italy but it wasn't a popular holiday until recent years, which is why Izzy has never celebrated it as a kid. Anyway, I was shopping for a costume and I noticed that like all costumes for women are just so slutty (not to mention expensive as hell) and it made me think of Izzy dressing up as something slutty, lol. I couldn't do that to Haruhi or Fumiko. They're just too...I dunno, innocent.

I kinda liked writing this, it's a break from all the current soap-opera drama happening in We Own The Night. Maybe I should make this a collection of different oneshots. Is it a good idea or nah? lol, if it is, send in some prompts you'd like to see written, yes? Review! Review!


	2. Chance Encounter

_A chance encounter leaves the normally sassy and grumpy woman speechless_

* * *

Giovanni Izabera did not, under any circumstances, want to be currently present.

Her family knew good and well that she detested attending these parties. She hated putting on the silly dresses with their equally silly heels and parading around a ballroom or Hotel being kind to strangers she really didn't care about.

But, as the daughter of Giovanni's Winery and the close niece _(and number one contender for taking over)_ of Iba Automobiles, it was her duty to attend every silly party her family was invited to. And for as long as she could remember, she would silently fume but heed to her parents or her Aunt and attend.

However, she was aware of the real reason her Aunt and Mother forced her to go to this particular party. Those two scheming sisters were trying to play matchmaker with the sour woman. In their eyes, twenty-three was too old to still be single. Not that she was single because she couldn't get the attention of the opposite sex _(and sometimes even the same sex..),_ oh that was not the case. Although she was sure her Father exaggerated, she was quite beautiful. Giovanni Izabera was beautiful, intelligent, wealthy and talented.

Securing a match was child's play.

Izabera simply chose to be single. She had much better things to focus on, such as college. After all, who would want to date some shallow, not to mention, horribly spoiled rich boy? Certainly not her! She scoffed at the mere thought.

And for some time, her Aunt and Mother had left the subject alone. After all, they did agree that focusing on her school work was much more important. But apparently the two had finally cracked and forced her to attend some business associate of Kya's gala. Every good looking man had been sent towards Izabera, only to be sent away.

"Busy-Bee!"

Izabera glanced up from her glass of champagne, swirling it absently as her younger _(and much more outgoing)_ cousin approached her. Iba Fumiko was twenty-two years old and was still as peppy as she was when she was just a fifteen year old girl.

The tall brunette sighed heavily, giving her cousin a glare with dry eyes. "Don't call me that, Fufu," She grumbled past cherry-red lips. Fumiko only smiled, sidling up next to her taller cousin. Izabera usually had a good four inches over Fumiko but with heels she had been forced into, Izabera had an extra three inches added to her height.

"You're so mean," Fumiko pouted childishly. Izabera only sighed, rolling her eyes. Even after all these years, Fumiko still acted like a child. Sometimes, she wondered how it was possible they were even related. They were opposites in every way possible.

"Where's Ootori? I'm surprised you managed to detach yourself from him long enough to come speak with me," Izabera asked, wry amusement lighting her eyes up as Fumiko blushed. Fumiko had been dating the youngest Ootori son, Kyoya, since she was twenty. Personally, Izabera thought Kyoya was Satan reincarnated and took every chance she got to tell him that. In retaliation, Kyoya usually always had a snarky or sarcastic comment about Izabera's personality, notably her stubborn ways.

"Shut up, Izzy," Fumiko mumbled out of the side of her mouth. "He's speaking with some friends from high school and I thought it would be nice if I introduced you to them. They're your age," Fumiko reached forward to grab her cousin's wrist and dragged her off before Izabera could say anything. They weaved through the other guests, politely greeting them just like their parents taught them to do. Fumiko led her cousin to a less populated area, away from the cluster of guests. Izabera recognized Kyoya immediately and once he caught her gaze, she childishly stuck her tongue out at him.

In turn, Kyoya rolled his eyes. Being in his presence always brought out the inner childish brat in Izabera. Fumiko stepped next to_ (in her words)_ the love of her life and released the iron grip she had on Izabera's wrist. Izabera grumbled, rubbing her abused appendage.

"So, you were able to locate your grumpy cousin," Kyoya spoke up first, weaving his long arm around Fumiko's slim waist. Izabera's hazel eyes narrowed, even after the two years of them dating, she still twisted her face up when Kyoya was being affectionate towards her cousin.

"You want to see grumpy? How about I take that God forsaken laptop of yours away from you? Or knock one of your precious vases down," Izabera rolled her eyes, placing her empty hand on her hip. Kyoya's eyes narrowed dangerously and his glasses glinted under the lights.

Fumiko, used to the bickering, simply cleared her throat. "Excuse me, you two..." She sent them both looks. "But I brought my cousin here for a reason. Izzy, I want you to meet Kyoya's former Senpais from Ouran High School," Fumiko nudged Izzy's side. "This is Haninozuka Mitsukuni," Fumiko waved to a blond with big honey-brown eyes. In a sense, he reminded Izabera of Kyoya's best friend, Tamaki. If Fumiko hadn't said his last name, Izabera would have pegged the two for being related.

"It's a pleasure," She greeted sweetly. The blond returned her smile and she swore to God flowers began to bloom around his face. It slightly unnerved her. Not forgetting her manners, she reached out to shake his hand. And well...for such a sweet-faced person, he had a strong grip.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Berry-Chan."

Wait, what did he just call her?

"And this," Fumiko didn't even stop to question the new nickname bestowed upon her cousin. Izabera glared at Fumiko, wanting to question Haninozuka-San about her new nickname. Because what twenty-three year old woman wants to be called 'Berry-Chan' by a twenty-three year old man?

"This is Morinozuka Takashi," Fumiko motioned to the person standing next to the sweet-faced blond. He was tall, towering over Izabera despite her heels making her as tall as Kyoya. His hair was a tousle of black spikes and his eyes were dark gray.

Izabera was instantly struck by the strong gaze and for a second, she _forgot her own name. _A small blush bloomed across the bridge of her nose as she took in every detail that made this man perfect. Fumiko smiled almost in a conniving way and winked at both Mitsukuni and Kyoya. Her Mother and Auntie were going to lose it when she told them she introduced the normally grumpy interracial woman to a guy who actually made her speechless.

A small smile crept across Izabera's face as she held her hand up to Takashi. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Takashi-San."

A pleasure indeed.

* * *

TeeBeMe: Kay, so yes, I'm totally feeling these oneshots. I found a list of prompts I can use just in case you guys don't have any suggestions. There's 70 different prompts listed, so I'm sure I'll never run out of oneshots. Some of the oneshots will be connected to the We Own The Night storyline. And some oneshots will be like this one, in a completely different AU. And don't worry, they won't just focus on Izzy and Mori. Some will be Kyoya and Fu, some will be Hisa and Izzy, etc. I'm so excited.

don't worry humanentity8, I didn't disregard your Christmas suggestion. It's actually on the lists, lol. But I got you!

Hope you guys enjoyed!


	3. Library

_She should have known locking those library doors would be the worst thing to do. _

* * *

Izzy honestly liked History. She really did. Back in Italy, it had been her favorite subject next to Science. However, that was Italian History and not Japanese history. Really, she should be ashamed that she had never asked her Mother about the history of Japan. It was interesting, she thought, what with all the samurais, ninjas and different time periods that was just so different from Italy. But as interesting as it may be, she was having a horrible time with remembering the text. None of the material was sticking.

Izzy felt stupid.

And that's why she had barricaded herself in Ouran's library after classes had ended. For whatever reason, Host Club was canceled _(not that she was complaining, as if) _and Izzy believed it was the perfect opportunity to study for that upcoming exam that would count for three quarters of a grade.

Failure was not an option. If she failed this exam, she'd probably be moved down to class 3-B. Not that she really cared. But heiresses to million dollar companies simply did not get kicked out of 3-A and into 3-B. It was taboo and she would not stand for the idiotic and immature teasing her family was bound to receive if she failed.

Mori had offered to help her but she had waved the suggestion off. Not only did he have to attend to some things for the Kendo Club, he would also serve as a major distraction for her. Leaving her alone always made Mori uneasy but she has reassured him that this time she would be sure to lock the library's doors.

"The Edo period took place in between 1603 and 1868..." Izzy mumbled through slow lips. One of her worst habits was probably reading out loud. "The Japanese society was under the rule of Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional Daimyo..." She continued to speak softly to herself, leaning over every once in awhile to write something she deemed important.

A frantic knocking at the library's doors jerked her out of focus. She cocked her head to the side, staring at the large doors. Before she could get up and see who the hell was bothering her, a shrill voice invaded the room, passing through the doors. "My white lily!"

Izzy groaned, dropping her head into the textbook. The knocking persisted and she knew that if she didn't say something soon to let the idiot on the other side of the door that she was okay, he would go find Mori to kick the doors down. "What do you want, Tamaki?"

"Ah! You're alive! Uncle is pleased. Uncle thought his lovely white lily was in trouble," Tamaki continued to shout through the door. Izzy sighed in relief when she remembered she had locked the door and quietly thanked whatever God was taking pity on her at the moment.

"I'm fine, Tamaki. I told you guys I was just going to study in here."

"B-But...Mori-Senpai is worried about you."

"I just texted him and told him I was fine five minutes ago."

"Don't you know what could happen in the span of five minutes!?"

"You happened..."

"What was that?"

Izzy snorted into her palm at the rather perverted joke she had just made. She must have been spending too much time with Hikaru and Kaoru. Their perverted ways were beginning to settle into her. "Ah, nothing. I said nothing."

She heard Tamaki mumble to himself for several seconds before he was being loud once again. "Did you lock the doors, Izzy? How is that even possible? This is the school's library. Where's the librarian? This is illegal. You're being illegal, Izzy. Doing illegal things, shame on you. My niece is better than that!"

"Oh my God," Izzy ran her hand down here face in exasperation. "Tamaki, shut up. This is not illegal. The librarian went home for the day. She gave me permission to be in here before she left. Now go away, Tamaki. I'm trying to study!"

She heard the blond let out a defeated 'okay' before hearing him shuffle away. Izzy waited several minutes and when she didn't hear Tamaki run back to the doors at breakneck speed to break them down, she turned back to her textbook. "Alright...where was I? Oh. That's right. How the Edo period came to be..." She mumbled, brown eyes scanning the black words printed out of the page. She read to herself, jotting down notes she thought that could be on the test and skipping over the things that didn't seem as important.

"The first goal of the newly established Tokugawa government was to pacify the country. What was one of the reasons why they would want to pacify the country? I bet that will be on the test. Ah...in 1600, the Battle of Sekigahara took place. Japan had a long period of peace after that battle, right? Aha! I was right."

_Scratch...Scratch... _

Izzy jumped and frantically looked around the room as a scratching sound became louder and more frantic. "What the hell is that?" She asked herself, eyes darting around the room in an almost fearful manner. Her eyes landed on the doors and her breath caught in her throat.

What if...what is it was–

"My white liiiiiiiiily!"

Izzy slapped her forehead. God, she was going to murder that blond. "Tamaki! What the hell did I tell you!? And why are you scratching on the door like that? It's creepy!"

A horrified gasped stopped the scratching. "Izzy! What did Uncle tell you about that horrible language? I'll have to wash your mouth out with soap, young lady! Now open this door right now!"

"I'm not doing anything you creepy reject. And don't call me 'young lady', I'm older than you, remember? Now quit being creepy and go away! I'm trying to study and I don't have time to play these games with you."

"But Izzy..."

"_Now,_ Tamaki!"

Once again, the blond let out a defeated 'okay' and hurried away from the locked doors. Izzy sighed heavily and looked at her notebook. She didn't even have a page full of notes yet. Her shoulders slumped and she slouched in the chair, running her hands through her hair. She was never going to get anything down with Tamaki stalking her. She wondered if it would be possible to sneak out and go home. She blew at a stray strand of hair. The minute she left the library, Tamaki would probably tackle her. God, where was Haruhi when Izzy needed her?

Sitting up and squaring her shoulders, she decided to get back to her studies. Whining and complaining wasn't going to get her anywhere. And besides, she was ninety-five percent sure that with her tone of voice, Tamaki had taken her seriously and would leave her be for some time.

Oh..but that five percent. She should have listened to that five percent...

Forty-five minutes had passed by and Izzy's notebook was three pages full of notes that she deemed important enough to take the time to study thoroughly. She was studying the last section of the Edo period depicting the fall of the Edo period and the Restoration of the Meiji period when she heard a strange noise. Izzy had no idea how to describe the noise. It sounded like frantic shuffling. Her eyebrows knitted together as she glanced around the room. She couldn't even pinpoint where the damn shuffling was coming from. She glanced at the door in suspicion.

"Tamaki!" She got up and hurried to the doors, unlocking it. "I swear to God, if you're being weird again I'm going to punch you in that princely face of yours!" She threw the doors open only to come with utter silence. Even the shuffling had stopped. Izzy only squinted in suspicion and cautiously looked down the hallway. But the blond was no where to be found and all was quiet once more. The brunette only frowned, slowly stepping back into the library and locking the doors.

She returned to her seat, eyes still scanning the room. But there was no clues that would lead her to finding out what that noise had been. She couldn't even figure out where it was coming from. Izzy pursed her lips and shook her head, shaking the feeling off. At least it had stopped. Sighing heavily, she prepared herself to read the last paragraph on the Edo period when the shuffling started again. It was accompanied by a loud wheezing, as if someone was struggling to breath. Izzy looked up, slightly put off by the sound and began to wildly search the library.

Before she could anything, she heard a strange noise from above her. Tilting her head back, she looked up just in the time to see the ceiling shift before it burst open right above her. She let out a surprised scream and shoved herself backwards just as something dropped down onto the table in a blur of periwinkle, black and yellow. Izzy's chair rocked back and it fell backwards, taking the terrified brunette with it. Izzy hit the carpeted floor with a thump and let out a groan as whatever that fell onto the table let out a groan with her.

Several moments ticked by before Izzy slowly rolled onto her side. She pushed herself up on her hands and knees before sitting back on her knees, rubbing the back of her head. The carpet had cushioned the blow before she was still seeing shots of colors every time she blinked. Just as slowly as she sat up, she slowly turned to see whatever the hell had landed on her table. Several more moments clocked by awkwardly as she stared at the figure laying on the table, holding their head with animated tears gushing out of their eyes.

"Tamaki, you idiot!"

* * *

TeeBeMe: Kay, so yeah. Tamaki and Izzy are always fun to write. They're like those unlikely best friends. You know, one is like all bubbly and optimistic and the other is all sarcastic and dry.

Panda-Chan8, yeah I was having a hard time coming up with prompts so I went to deviantart. It's like an art website, I dunno if you ever heard of it. But anyway, I just searched up writing prompts and a ton came up. I hope it helps! And lol, I don't think I could ever break Mori and Izzy up, that's just horrible. I'm glad it's not even on my list of writing prompts. I'd be like fuck noooo.

But I'm so glad you and everyone else who reviewed, favorited and followed is enjoying these. I'm having fun writing them. See you next prompt update!


	4. the little mermaids

_She had to wonder what sort of twisted and stupid fairy tale Fu dragged her in to._

* * *

"I can't believe him! Can you believe what Daddy said, Izzy?"

"Well..."

"He couldn't be anymore wrong!"

"Actually..."

"How could he say I don't know what love is?!"

"You don't."

"Treating me a like a child! The audacity!"

"You're only sixteen..."

The sixteen year old twisted around, her fin twitching in agitation. Her pink lips twisted into a frown not fit for her face as she regarded her older cousin. Her older cousin stared back blankly, her own fin twitching leisurely. She folded her pale arms across her white clam-covered breasts. "You don't understand what it's like to be in love, Izzy," She insisted primly. "If you understood what it was like then you would agree with me. Why are you so against me joining the love of my life?"

Izzy sighed heavily, bringing one finger up to twirl into her mass of brown and blonde locks. "Well, like I said before, you're only sixteen," She began to speak. "And oh..there is the matter of the love of your life being human and you well...you're a mermaid..."

"They do say opposites attract!"

"I highly doubt they meant opposites being a human and a fish."

Fumiko shot a dark look towards Izzy. "So...if I were human, then it would be fine? You, Daddy and Mama and everyone else wouldn't give me such a hard time about my beloved?" Fumiko asked with hope shining in her eyes.

Izzy stared back at Fumiko and wondered vaguely what twisted fairy tale was running through Fumiko's mind. "You can't just abandon your entire life for some human male. You haven't even met him. You just watch him from afar. That's stalking, you know."

"Oh, shut up," Fumiko huffed for the second time. "Your parents did the same, you know. Didn't Aunt Aya run off with Uncle Al, abandoning her life?" Fumiko slyly pointed out Izzy's parents' history. At the mention of her parents, Izzy rolled her eyes.

"They're both merpeople."

Fumiko shrugged. "Those are minor details," She stated, ignoring her cousin mumbles that they weren't minor details but major details. "So..." She rubbed her chin in thought. "What you're saying is that in order to be with my beloved, I need to be human."

"That's not what I'm saying at all.."

"You're a genius, Izzy!"

"Well, yes, I am but that's not what I meant."

Fumiko ignored her cousin, smiling brightly. She had heard of a sea-witch who was talented enough to cast powerful spells. Surely the witch could turn her into a human so that she could be with her beloved! A determined look gleamed in her dark eyes. "Come on, there's no time to waste!" Fumiko grappled Izzy's arm into a strong lock and swam off at top speed. Izzy had no choice but to follow her scheming cousin. She had a feeling this was not going to go well.

* * *

Izzy floated next to Fumiko in front of the dark cave. Her arms were folded across the white armor brassier she wore. Her fin twitched in nervous caution as she shook her head. "I don't like this. How do you know this witch is legit?"

"Renge told me about her."

"Oh my God..."

Before Izzy could go off in a tirade about how psychotic Renge could be, two serpent-like creatures slithered out from the dark caves. Their sharp golden eyes eyed the two mermaids in obvious amusement.

"Look, Kaoru...we have guests..."

"Boss will be so pleased, Hikaru..."

The creatures slithered around the two girls, coiling around their thin waists and slicking their way up their bodies. Izzy frowned harshly and quickly swatted the creatures away. "We're not here to be molested by sea-serpents," She huffed. "We're here to see the sea-witch. Is she in?" The serpents hummed in what they assumed meant yes. Fumiko let out a tiny squeak as the serpents coiled around them for a second time and began to push them into the dark cave. They swam deeper and deeper into the cave until they came upon a dwelling.

Lazing on a sledge overlooking the dwelling was the sea-witch. She opened her eyes slowly, honey brown eyes looking over the two new visitors. "Kaoru, Hikaru. What have you brought me?" She sat up, revealing herself. Izzy had to guess she was some sort of Octopus judging by the black octopus-like appendages from her waist downward.

"Oh," She purred. "I know who you two are," the sea-witch grinned widely, twirling and twisting over to the two mermaids. "Fumiko and Izabera. Daughters to very powerful families..." the witch hummed, reaching forward to flick a strand of Fumiko's jet-black hair.

"You know of us?"

"I have the feeling she's not supposed to be this attractive..."

"Of course I do!" the witch insisted. "Who doesn't know of you two? You're practically princesses of the sea. Now, what would two princesses like you two be doing all the way out here? You're a far swim from home, you know..."

"I have a request to ask of you."

"I swear that she's supposed to look like a hag."

The sea-witch only hummed, running her hand through her honey-blonde locks. "I see, I see. Well, I am Hisa. And I am no hag," Hisa stated, directing an annoyed look towards the brunette. The brunette only shrugged. She just had this feeling Hisa was not supposed to be this young and attractive.

Fumiko quickly explained her dilemma and begged for Hisa's help. "All I want is to be with Kyoya-Kun. But my cousin has made a good point. How am I to be with him if I am a mermaid and he is a human? Please, I know you're talented enough to help me out, Hisa-Sama."

Hisa listened to the tragic love story, nodding and humming along at the right moments. "How tragic," She pouted, throwing her hand over her face dramatically. "I just love a good love story like this," She pointed out. Her pout increased as she looked at Fumiko's face. "Oh, you poor unfortunate soul.."

"You're not about to sing, are you?"

Hisa glanced at Izzy, her pout turning into a frown. "You're a sarcastic little bugger, aren't you?" She rolled her eyes. "And what exactly is your role in all of this? Why are you here? Are you also in love with a human?"

Izzy snorted at the thought. "As if," She rolled her eyes. "I'm only here to watch after Die-Hard over here," Izzy jerked her thumb to Fumiko's direction. Fumiko blushed and muttered that she was old enough to take care of herself without Izzy keeping watch all the time.

Hisa leaned backwards, lips pursed in thought. "I've decided," She suddenly stated, clapping her hands together. "I've decided that I will aide you in this journey," She looked towards Fumiko with a smile. Fumiko let out a squeal of happiness, clapping her hands together. Izzy only quirked an eyebrow.

"What's the catch?"

"There's no catch."

Hisa stared at Izzy for a long moment before smiling sheepishly. "Well...now that I think about it. I can turn you into a human...however, in order to stay human, you must experience true love's kiss by a week. If you do not, you will be turned back into a mermaid."

"You're not going to take her voice?"

"Why would I?"

"It just seems like something that would happen."

"Oh, Izzy. Stop it. I can't even sing."

Hisa let out a giggle, she liked these two girls. Shame they just met, they could have been friends. "So, do you agree to my terms?" She prompted the younger mermaid. Fumiko nodded so quickly that Izzy was sure her brain was rattling around.

"Alright..." Hisa moved backwards and began to spout out nonsense that neither mermaid could understand. Izzy watched as a bright golden light brightened the cave up, surrounded them. Her eyebrows knitted together when she realized that not only Fumiko was being engulfed by the bright light, but so was she. Her tail began to burn to the point where she nearly screamed.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Izzy growled angrily at the sea-witch as the burning sensation in her tail increased ten fold. It felt like her tail was being split apart! She was going to pass out from all the pain.

"Everyone should experience love..."

Everything went black.

* * *

Izzy opened her eyes to see the bright blue sky above her. She blinked hard and groaned, rolling on to her side. Her tail...it was hurting so badly and now she couldn't feel the pain. Frowning softly, she looked down and nearly screamed in horror.

Her lovely forest-green tail was gone. In it's place were two, long and slim, tan legs. A sense of panic erupted in her as she sat up and stared at the new appendages. "Oh my God..." She mumbled to herself and began to look around. One way or another, she had ended up on the shoreline of the beach. A half of yard down, she could see her younger cousin. Just like Izzy, Fumiko's salmon-pink tail was gone and in its' place were pale and slender legs.

Izzy sat up and rolled to her knees, looking around. "I'm going to kill that witch..." She grumbled to herself as she pushed herself to wobbly legs. It took her almost thirty minutes to walk a straight line without dropping to the sand. She stood over her cousin, frowning harshly. This was all Fumiko's doing. If her block-headed cousin hadn't insisted on being with her so called beloved, Izzy wouldn't be on a random beach with legs. She would be a thousand feet under water, swimming around with her powerful tail.

Blankly, she kicked the side of Fumiko's head.

"Ow! Izzy! What's the matter with you?" Fumiko scowled, eyes flickering open to meet the dry stare of her cousin. When Izzy didn't reply, Fumiko slowly sat up and at once, noticed her new legs. "Oh! Oh my! It worked. Izzy, look! I have legs! I'm a human! Oh! Look at you, you're human as well!" Fumiko scrambled to her feet, holding onto to Izzy so she wouldn't drop to the sand.

"Well! Are you satisfied?"

The cousins turned towards the sea to see Hisa laying about on one of the rocks. She was smiling softly as she regarded the two. "My, Izabera, I didn't realize how tall you would be compared to Fumiko. It suits you, though."

"I hate you. So, so very much."

"That's not nice. After all I've done for you?"

"I didn't ask for this! This is not my stupid fairy tale! It's Fu's!"

Hisa only sighed heavily, shaking her head. "I only did it because you were not satisfied with your life. I can see it in your eyes, Izabera. You will thank me later once you meet the love of your life. And you will."

"Aren't you supposed to be, oh I don't know, a _witch? _You're not behaving like a villainous witch."

"Who says all witches are bad?"

"You're supposed to be...oh, never mind."

Hisa simply smiled sweetly. "Oh, you can't go into town like that! You're naked! Here," Hisa waved her hand and light surrounded the two once more. Izzy warily eyed Hisa but said nothing. When the light dissipated, they were both dressed. Their skirts were similar with their fin's colors, they wore black corsets but Fumiko's corset consisted of thick straps while Izzy's corset was strapless. They both wore white shirts, although Fumiko's shirt possessed a high collar with no sleeves. Izzy's collar dipped low enough to show cleavage and she had billowy sleeves that stopped at her elbows.

Izzy sighed heavily, a sense of dread overtaking her she looked towards the booming city. Shaking her head, she waved Hisa off and quickly stormed away. Fumiko quickly thanked the kind sea-witch and hurried after her fuming cousin.

"I'm such a good witch..."

* * *

"Well, how are we going to get you to your beloved?"

Fumiko bit her bottom lip as her eyes wildly searched the city. The two girls had made their way to the bustling town's square. Izzy was sitting on a random barrel, her pretty legs folded gracefully. She had adapted quickly to the legs, unlike Fumiko. Fumiko fumbled about clumsily, like a fish out of water. She paused with a wry face at the expression and shook her head. "Honestly, I have no idea. But we have a week. You know, you should try to find the love of your life."

Izzy snorted and shook her head. "Don't bother. I'll be happy to return to the sea. Where I belong," She shrugged with a bland look. Fumiko frowned softly at that. So Izzy wasn't planning on staying with her in the human's world? No, she supposed that was rather selfish of her to just assume Izzy would stay with her. She didn't even want to be human to start with.

"Ah, there he is," Izzy suddenly pointed out rudely. Across the square was Fumiko's supposed love. He was tall, around Izzy's new height, with piercing black eyes and neatly combed onyx hair to match. He was dressed in the finest clothes money could buy as he leisurely strolled about. "Oh? He's wealthy? Well, that's good," Izzy nodded and hopped off of the barrel, intent on making her presence known to the Kyoya. Fumiko's eyes were wide and she snatched at the end of Izzy's ponytail, jerking her backwards.

"What do you think you're doing? We can't just pop up in front of him like that!"

"Why not?"

"Because that's not how it works!"

Izzy rolled her eyes and glanced back towards Kyoya before a conniving smirk found it's way across her plump lips. "Ah, look. He's looking at you. I think he noticed you when you started to scream like a banshee," the brunette snickered. Fumiko's face heated up and she chanced a glance, squeaking out when Kyoya caught her gaze. "I think you've bewitched him..." Izzy muttered as Kyoya suddenly jerked towards their direction. "Oh, look. He's coming towards us. Fu? Oh, God. Let me handle this."

When Kyoya stopped in front of them, he eyed them carefully. "Excuse me, ladies, I don't mean to be rude," He paused, looking at Fumiko then back to Izzy. "But I don't believe I've seen either of you here before."

Izzy nodded with a gracious smile. "You are correct, you have not seen us before. We come from a very far land. I am Izabera-Hime of _Italia _and this is my younger cousin, Fumiko-Hime," Izzy placed a hand on Fumiko's back and roughly shoved her forward. "We've come here on a small vacation."

Kyoya nodded slowly, eyes straying back to Fumiko. Izzy could only smile as Fumiko blushed. "I see," He nodded slowly. "I am Kyoya, the youngest son of Lord Ootori. May I inquire as to where you are staying?"

Fumiko glanced at Izzy, slightly panicked. They weren't staying anywhere! They didn't even have currency or a change of clothes. Izzy remained calm but her eyes seemed to become sad as she pouted slightly. "Well, you see, Kyoya-San. We've been dealt with a horrible situation. It seems the boat carrying our cargo sank, I honestly don't know how. We came here by ourselves, we're trying to prove to my parents that we're independent, you see. Now we are without our possessions, money or somewhere to stay," Izzy lied easily, putting on a believable act.

Kyoya blinked, slightly surprised at their horrible tale. "That is unfortunate," He shook his head. "Please, it would be my family's pleasure to allow you both to stay at our home. It is big enough, so it won't be trouble to house you until you can contact your parents or find a means to replace your lost currency and possessions."

Izzy smiled gratefully, dipping into a deep bow. Fumiko followed suit, wondering when Izzy had become such a good liar. "Oh, you are too kind, Kyoya-San. My cousin and I will have to repay you somehow."

Kyoya simply hummed and motioned for them to follow after him. As he walked ahead of them, Fumiko glanced at Izzy. "You are a phenomenal actress," She spoke quietly, loud enough for only Izzy to hear.

"I have three older brothers, how do you think I stayed out of trouble all the time?"

* * *

Izzy watched quietly as Fumiko entertained a conversation with Kyoya. It had taken two days for her cousin to actually speak a full sentence without stuttering but she somehow managed. Izzy smiled softly and shook her head. She was going to miss her cousin once she returned to the sea. But this is what Fumiko chose. She wanted to live in this world, an unfamiliar world. A strange world. But Izzy did not. She had been just fine in the sea. She was not interested in this world or love.

The brunette shook her head and turned, running abruptly into what felt like a wall. "Good Lord..." She grumbled, rubbing her bruised nose. The hazel-eyed woman stepped back and looked up into the face of the most handsome man she had ever laid eyes on. He towered over her with a mass of black spikes that looked as if he constantly ran his fingers through it. His eyes were so dark, they seemed silver or gray–she couldn't decide. He was dressed in fine clothes that complimented his broad shoulders oh so nicely and–

Oh, she was staring.

"Ah," She laughed nervously, hand still pressed to her nose. God, was he made out of bricks or something? Her nose felt like it was bruised. "Forgive me, I wasn't paying attention," She laughed nervously.

"It's alright," His voice was a deep rumble and it sent scandalous shivers down her spine. "Are you alright?" He stepped forward, motioning to her aching nose. She pinched it in wonder and pouted when it still stung. How hard had she run into him?

"Oh, I'm fine, really," She squeaked out. Goodness Gracious, she sounded like Fumiko. Izzy took a step back, smiling nervously with her hand pinned to her face. "I just wasn't expecting to run into you, it's more out of shock then pain," She tried to explain. He eyed her for a moment before slowly nodding. She continued to smile nervously before realizing just how odd she was acting. "How rude of me, I don't believe we've met. I'm Izabera," She introduced herself, her smile warming up.

"I'm Mori," tall, dark and handsome introduced himself as well, taking her hand that was pressed to her nose and kissing it politely. "You must be the guest Kyoya spoke about," He hummed quietly, his hand slowly slipping away from hers. She bit her bottom lip, leaning into the actual wall this time.

"This is true," Izzy nodded with an amused smile. "Kyoya was kind enough to allow my cousin and I to stay here until we figured things out. Although personally, I think he only agreed because it meant he would be able to spend some time with my cousin," She motioned behind her to the pair.

Mori peeked over her head, seeing his old friend speaking with a petite woman. "Ah," He nodded in understanding. No wonder he hadn't seen Kyoya at all. He's been spending all of his time with that little lady. "Then...would you like to accompany me for a walk?"

Izzy blushed.

* * *

"I see you've been spending a lot of time with Mori," Fumiko slyly pointed out as she stepped into the guest bedroom Izzy was residing in. The brunette glanced up from an old weathered book, an eyebrow quirked.

"Yes, and you almost fainted today."

"Shut up."

Fumiko plopped down on the bed next to Izzy, frowning softly. "Izzy...time is almost up," She spoke softly, eyes staring into the side of her cousin's face. She watched as Izzy's lips pursed in what she assumed to be in deep thought. When it was clear Izzy was not going to say anything, Fumiko decided to push it. "You've never connected with anyone back home as much as you've connected with Mori, you know. You think I don't notice but I do. You're happy when you're around him. He makes you feel things you've never felt before, doesn't he?"

"Fu..."

Fumiko firmly shook her head, she was not going to let Izzy talk her way out of this. "Why are you so against it, Izzy? If he makes you happy then you should stay with him," She insisted with a firm frown. Izzy only shook her head.

"How can you just toss your life aside for a person you just met? If things work out the way you want them to work out, you can never go back to your parents and your friends. And I'll never go back to my parents or my brothers."

Fumiko nodded slowly. She could understand Izzy's worries. Neither of them probably would be able to see their families again. And of course, that saddened her. But she knew that if she went back to the sea, she would never meet the love of her life because he was not apart of that world.

She wanted to be apart of his world. And if that meant leaving her life behind, well, that's just a sacrifice she was willing to make. "You're right. I probably won't ever go back and that's something I hate thinking about..." Fumiko stated, playing with the cuff of her sleeve. "And you probably think I'm so selfish for wanting this so badly.." She sighed heavily as Izzy finally closed her book and turned to look at her. "I know that if I return, I'll be miserable. I was miserable before. These last couple of days with Kyoya have probably been the best days of my life. And I know it's the same for you and Mori, don't even try to deny it," Fumiko laid backwards on the bed, stretching her arms above her head.

"But I'd rather be happy and in love over settling and being miserable, wouldn't you?"

* * *

Fumiko nervously bit her bottom lip, glancing up at Kyoya every now and then. She really didn't want to do this but she had to. She had to tell him the truth. Izzy had agreed to her thoughts and encouraged to tell Kyoya the truth before it was too late. "There's something about me that I should tell you," She began to say, taking a deep breath. How exactly was she supposed to tell him that she was a mermaid? A mermaid that turned into a human with the help of a sea-witch. He was going to think she was a lunatic.

"I'm not like other girls."

"No, you're not."

Fumiko shook her head. "No, I mean...I'm not exactly 'normal'. My background is a little..." She paused, trying to think of a good enough word. "Strange," She slumped her shoulders at the word that spewed out of her mouth.

"No, Fumiko. I mean I know that you're not like other girls. Or you cousin, for that matter," Kyoya gave her an amused smirked as she gave him a confused look. "Well for one, I know there is no such place as Italia," He stated, hands folded across his chest.

Fumiko laughed nervously. Well, technically, there was. Italia was just a thousand feet underneath the sea. "Well...there's a reasonable explanation for that..." She stated weakly. "Ah, it might not be 'reasonable' though," She rubbed the back of her neck.

"And there was never any reporting of your boat crashing."

"I can explain."

"Please do."

Fumiko sighed. "Listen, just let me tell the entire story with no interruptions, okay? It's...it's not a story you hear every day," Fumiko pleaded with him, hoping she and Izzy wouldn't be thrown out by the time she was finished her story. "You see...my cousin and I...we're mermaids," She stated quickly, wondering if she should have built up to that instead of just blurting it out. "Italia does exist, Izzy really is from Italia. It's just at the bottom of the ocean." She paused, glancing at his face for any signs of anger. Instead, his face was a blank slate.

"Some time ago..I saw you on the beach. You were with a blond haired male, he had a lot of energy. Izzy called him a goof," Fumiko paused at the memory. "It was strange but I instantly fell in love with you. Everything about you seemed so perfect even though I know you aren't perfect. Ever since that day, I came to the beach hoping I could see you, even if it was only for a moment. Izzy said I was being a stalker but I didn't see it that way. At the time it was the only way I could see you without drawing attention to my people and I. Mermaids are very distrustful of humans, you know."

Fumiko didn't look up this time, rolling her lips together. "One day Izzy pointed out that I couldn't be with you because of our different species. It broke my heart, I knew I would never feel the same with anyone else so I was determined to at least meet you," She pulled at the cuff of her sleeve. "So I went to a sea-witch for help. She was very kind, surprisingly. A bit pushy, but kind. She really wanted Izzy and I to find our happiness. She's a good woman...even if she has a bad reputation for being a sea-witch. She turned us both into humans and told us we had a week."

Fumiko finished and nervously waited for Kyoya to answer. She peeked up to see him looking at her in deep thought. "What happens when the week is up?" He asked after a long pause of just staring blankly into her face.

"We turn back into mermaids."

Kyoya nodded. "Is there something you must do in order to stay human?"

"True love's kiss."

* * *

Izzy stared blankly at Kyoya. About twenty minutes ago, Mori had wordlessly lifted her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and calmly carried her off to Kyoya's study. The giant had gently set her down in the chair, ignoring the poisonous look she was giving both him and Kyoya. "Tell me the truth, Izzy. Are you a mermaid?" Kyoya asked with a straight face. Mori glanced at his old friend, an eyebrow quirked. A mermaid? Just what was this about? Mermaids didn't exist. And why would he just randomly ask her a question like that to begin with?

Izzy glanced at her red-faced cousin, blank expression never changing. She looked back towards the younger boy. "Yes, I'm a mermaid," She stated simply with no tics to her face. "I'm from an underwater city called Italia and I was dragged into this by my stalker cousin over there," She casually pointed to Fumiko, who in turn, glared at her.

"And you have a week to experience true love's kiss and if you don't, you'll turn back into a mermaid?"

"That's what the sea-witch said."

Kyoya nodded slowly, glancing in between the two women. Izzy's face did not change as the minutes clocked by. Her eyes suddenly twitched towards Mori and she sighed. "You must be confused. I'm sorry you had to be dragged into this," She sighed, standing up. "I owe you a better explanation."

Kyoya and Fumiko watched Izzy lead Mori away, a frown settled on her face. Once they were out of sight, Kyoya slowly turned his attention back on Fumiko. "Mermaids," He stated simply as if that was the answer to everything.

Fumiko turned her dark eyes on him, lips pursed thoughtfully. After a moment, she simply nodded. "Mermaids," She stated simply. "I don't expect you to believe me. But it's the truth."

"And the whole thing about love?"

Fumiko paused, frowning softly. "Love at first sight," She offered simply. "It might sound crazy to you but that's the only way I can describe what I felt towards you when I first saw you. I knew that I would never feel the same way about another person ever again..."

* * *

"I told you."

Izzy frowned blankly, eyes trained to the sea. Fumiko stood next to her, a smirk stretched across her face. Izzy simply stood with her hands on her hips, eyes never straying from the sea. "It's been two months. Do you think they're still looking for us?" She asked after a long pause.

Fumiko's smirk dropped only to be replaced with a somber frown. "I know they are," She stated simply. Although Izzy was never quick to admit it, she, like her cousin, had fallen for a complete stranger. The brunette didn't like to speak of their families or former lives, often feeling guilt for choosing a man over her family. "I miss them," Fumiko suddenly said, prompting her cousin to finally look over at her. "I miss them all. My parents, your parents, your brothers. I miss them. But I think...they would understand. They would want us to find our happiness. And...we did."

"Happiness and love is selfish, don't you think?"

The cousins were silent for nearly an hour, simply watching the sea. The sun would set soon and they would have to return to their new homes, to their loves. But for now, they simply watched the home they would never return to.

"Ah! Yoohoo!"

The two blinked, turning to the right to see none other than the sea-witch perched on the rock she had been laying on when they first woke up on the beach two months ago. The girls blinked in confusion, surprised they she would just lay about in the open like that.

"Where have you two been?" Hisa pouted, rolling on to her back and hanging her head off the edge of the rock. "Your families have gone into a panic, looking for you both. All sorts of rumors have been spread. You two swam off, you were caught by humans, some even believe you've been crushed by boats! We all know how curious you two can be around those ships, you know?"

"What the hell do you mean where have we been? Where do you think we've been? We experienced true love's kiss and now we're humans for the rest of our lives," Izzy pointed out, she could already picture her family going into a frenzy. Oh...her Mother must be heartbroken.

"Who said anything about being humans for the rest of your lives?"

"Excuse me?"

Fumiko glanced in between the two, frowning in confusion. "Ah, Hisa-Sama? Remember our deal? You turn us into mermaids and we have a week to have our kiss before we're turn back into mermaids forever?"

Hisa blinked and then rolled off of the rock and into the warmer. She neared the shoreline, frowning with amusement shining in her eyes. "I never said you couldn't turn back into mermaids if you had your kiss."

_"...What."_

Hisa had the audacity to giggle as if she told the funniest joke. "I only said you would turn back into mermaids if you didn't have your kiss. I never said you could never turn back if you did have your kiss," Hisa explained as if it was the simplest thing.

Izzy's eyebrows knitted together. "You're telling me we still have the ability to turn into mermaids even though we chose to be humans?" She asked slowly, wanting to make sure that she wasn't hearing wrong.

Hisa only nodded, smiling. "You still have the ability."

Fumiko let out a surprised shriek when Izzy darted towards the water. "I'm going to kill you, you screwed up sea-hag!"

"Izzy! Nooooo!"

* * *

TeeBeMe: Kay, so I was actually writing two other one-shots when Akari-Chan suggested I do like a fairy tale sort of thing. I just heard all of Hisa and Izzy's banter as a sea-witch and a mermaid so I had to do it. And of course Hisa screws around and pisses Izzy off. Lol, I'm definitely thinking of doing more fairy tales with a twist. What do you guys think?

Hope you guys enjoyed this update! Until next update.


	5. Scheming

_He should have known this had everything to do with her psychotic best friend_

* * *

He was always a respectful man.

Especially when it came to his girlfriend, Izabera. He always treated her with the utmost care and respect. His Mother made sure of it, especially when she found out Izzy had moved out into her own apartment. Every chance Izzy came to visit her, Suzumi always made sure her son was the perfect gentlemen.

And at first, he hadn't really been concerned about things males are usually concerned with when they have girlfriends. Besides, Izzy freaked out at the simplest of touches anyway. So going any further then usual was out of his mind.

And then summer rolled around.

Izzy was not known for showing any sort of skin. But then the summer came and suddenly she was all short skirts, tiny shorts and small tank tops. Mori had a feeling Izzy just didn't see herself as someone who was sexually attractive even if other males constantly tried to gain her attention.

"Takashi!" Izzy suddenly threw herself down, laying her body across his lap. The brunette grabbed at his hand, playing with his fingers. He clenched his teeth, eyes flickering to the back of her thighs. The giant took a deep breath and looked towards her face, eyebrow quirked. "Hani is coming back for Summer break today," She smiled sweetly. "And everyone is going down to Kyoya's beach," Izzy paused, eyebrows knitting together for a moment. A moment later, she shook her head. "We should go, yes?"

"Ah."

* * *

"Hey!" Izzy waved with a great big grin as she, Mori and Hani approached their friends. They had been the last ones to arrive seeing as their last classes before summer break had run on a little late. Tamaki cheered in excitement and dashed towards the trio, locking Izzy into one of his infamous hugs.

"My niece! Uncle is so glad that you were able to come," the tall blond chimed into her hair. Izzy only smiled into his neck, allowing the blond to have his way for once. Kaoru and Hikaru joined, slinging their arms around her waist.

"Mori-Senpai! Hani-Senpai!" Fumiko approached with Haruhi and Kyoya in tow. Fumiko caught Hani's flying hug, swinging him around in a circle. "We were beginning to think that you three would just stay home," She giggled, settling the smaller blond back down.

"Don't be ridiculous," Izzy snorted as Kyoya's maids began to transfer their suitcases from the car to their rooms. "I've been dying to just relax," She hummed, breaking out of the trio of moron's hold. The brunette twisted around, smiling brightly.

"Let's go swimming."

* * *

She was trying to kill him. Izzy was trying her damned hardest to kill him. And she might just succeed. Her smiles were innocent but he knew. It was the only reasonable explanation with her sudden comfort with showing more skin. During their last summer break, she always wore sarongs or crop tops when she went swimming. There was always something to cover her up. But clearly she must have thrown all her sarongs and crop tops out in favor for the skimpy bikinis she had been wearing all week.

He was ashamed to say it but he had avoided being alone with her at all costs. Anytime she approached him, he always went into another direction. Anytime she came knocking at his door, he always had some type of excuse not to let her in. Mori knew he was hurting her feelings but how exactly was he supposed to explain to his very prudish girlfriend that he wanted to jump on top of her? She would blush for days and probably pass out. Or just be extremely awkward towards him.

The giant flopped backwards on the bed, throwing his left arm over his eyes. He knew he only had a little bit of time left before Izzy finally snapped. Maybe a day or two before she would corner him somewhere and demand for him to speak with her. There was a sudden knocking at his door. "Takashi? Listen, I'm not sure what I did but you can't just keep ignoring me," Izzy huffed through the door. Ah, it looks like he overestimated how long it took for her to snap.

When he didn't say anything, the door eased open. He didn't move, hoping that maybe she would just go away if she thought he was asleep. Of course, no such luck. She quietly crept towards the bed, leaning over to skim the tips of her nails across his cheek. He heard the brunette sigh and he thought that maybe she would leave. But no, none of that. Instead, the bed dipped down with her slight weight and he felt her settle into his side. She shifted, tangling her naked legs with his.

Wait, naked?

Mori inhaled and the fumes of chlorine filled his nose. A sense of panic overtook him as he assumed that she had just come from the pool and was still dressed in those scraps she called a bikini. Izzy didn't seem to see any problem and instead leaned further into him. When he still didn't react, she huffed. Again, he had assumed she had given up but of course that just wasn't the case. Izzy leaned into his neck, feathering soft kisses across his neck. His muscles tensed and she carried out without any caution.

Izzy paused at his pulse. Her lips pressed against the pulse in a soft kiss but they parted and he suddenly felt her tongue and her teeth. He kept his arm settled over his eyes and tried with all of his might to ignore her mouth sucking, biting and licking his neck. "Izabera," His voice suddenly broke through, prompting her to pause for the second time with her lips pressed to his neck. "You need to stop," He stated in a commanding voice. Her lips shifted into a pout and she innocently nibbled at his neck.

"You don't like it?" She asked, innocence leaking off of her words. "You've been avoiding me ever since we got here," the brunette spoke, lips brushing his neck. Mori had to wonder if her innocence was legit. Was she really unaware of what she was capable of? Izzy was a smart girl, she couldn't be that oblivious to what she was capable of.

"Takashi," She groaned into his neck, slightly upset that he was still trying to avoid speaking with her. She suddenly bit roughly at his neck, prompting him to inhale sharply. The arm that she had been laying on curled around her waist to jerk her on top of him. Wide hazel brown eyes stared down at him in wonder. There was no space to speak of in between their bodies. It was all flesh on flesh and no barrier but for the simple scraps she called a bikini and the thin muscle shirt and basketball shorts he was currently dressed in.

She let out a surprised gasp and shifted, allowing her knees to sink into the mattress and pressed her hands into his shoulders to push herself up. Mori's hands reached up, thumbs boldly slipping under the strings of her bikini bottoms and settled his hands on her hips. Although she didn't blush like he assumed, there was a nervous flicker in her eyes. Ah, so he was completely and utterly right. She was still the same prudish woman she had always been. She had just been more bold as of late.

"Do you know what you're doing?" He asked, his voice coming out as just barely a whisper. Her eyes flickered nervously again but instead of breaking down, she simply smiled innocently.

"I'm...currently laying on top of you. Do you know what you're doing?" She asked with all the innocence of a non-sexual being. But he was not falling for that. This girl knew exactly what she was doing when she came into his room dressed in a bikini. She could feel his fingers digging into her hips and bit her bottom lip. His hands moved, sliding down her hips and settling over her rump. If it was possible, her eyes became even more wide but she said nothing. Not even when his fingers dug into the thick flesh of her bottom.

The brunette let out a surprised squeak, that was bold of him. This was escalating quickly, she thought, trying her all not to blush until she passed out from all the blood rushing to her head. God, this was all of Hisa's fault. Before the summer holidays, her best friend inquired about Takashi's...erm...talents in the bedroom _(oh_ _God, she almost passed out at that question)._ The honey-blonde was completely caught off guard when Izzy had admitted that the two hadn't gone that far.

Why, Hisa had demanded. They were both of consequential age and Izzy lived in her own apartment so why in the world hadn't they taken the next step in their relationship? Izzy had never really thought about why Takashi hadn't brought that subject up. It's always on their minds, Hisa had insisted.

It got her to thinking. Was Takashi attracted to her in that way? Sexually? He could be attracted to her beauty and personality but not to her sexually. So, she began testing him. She made changes in her wardrobe. Instead of wearing t-shirts and yoga pants like usual, she wore tiny shorts, shirts that showed cleavage, and short skirts.

It embarrassed her to no end to wear clothes like that. In public and especially in front of Takashi. The other males on campus had showed more interest in her the minute she started showing more leg. But Takashi was different, of course. He didn't seem to take notice of her shift in wardrobe. It didn't even seem like it fazed him.

And then they came to the beach and she wore bikinis with no sarongs or crop tops. Instead, she wore the small bikinis Hisa forced her to take along, showing off every single curve her body had to offer. It didn't necessarily embarrass her to be around her friends dressed in the bikini. They were like her brothers, they certainly weren't sexually excited to see her body.

But Takashi...well...if anything, he seemed disgusted with her body. He turned away from her, showing her no attention and instead avoiding her at all costs. It saddened her. Saddened her to know that her boyfriend, that she was head over heels in love with, was not impressed with the body God had given her.

On several occasions, she had been praised for her body. She had nice long and toned legs, probably her best feature. Her weight had been up and down ever since her traumatic year at Ouran but she was never too skinny or never too fat.

Her hips were swollen to perfection, she had been told. And her breasts were the same, the perfect shape to balance the swell of her hips and bottom. Her stomach was toned like her legs, especially after she began to do her gymnastic warm ups to keep in shape so that she wouldn't gain the freshmen fifteen that every college freshmen went through.

More than once, she had been complimented. Her lovely long legs, her wide hips were perfect for birthing in the future, her breasts were well rounded, she had no body fat. She was tall and tanned with an exotic face. Beautiful, they had claimed. Like a model. She never really let the praise go to her head. What the hell did she care about what other people thought of her body? Whether it was compliments or not. None of it really mattered if Takashi constantly turned away from her.

She was determined to get to the bottom of it. Which is how she ended up straddling him in her skimpy bikini with his hands groping at her bottom. Well, she thought blandly, he doesn't mind her butt if his groping was any indication.

Izzy stiffened slightly when she felt one of his hands crawl up the span of her back. They stopped at the knot of her bikini top. His fingers toyed with the knot, loosening the top. His eyes had darkened by now, she noted. A nervous smile cracked her cool facade and she glanced to the side. "Well, look at the time," She squeaked out. He noted blandly that she wasn't even looking at the clock. "It's late! Almost dinner time, I need to go wash up," Izzy scrambled off of him, flashing him one last nervous grin before darting out of there.

Mori frowned and looked towards the ceiling, sighing in exasperation.

* * *

Izzy scrubbed at her curly locks, silently crying animated tears. "Oh God," She whined out loud, lathering the shampoo rather harshly into her scalp. "What have I done? Why did I listen to Hisa, of all people?" She continued to whine, pressing her forehead to the wall. "I'm catholic, I shouldn't even be doing any of this. I'm such a filthy sinner..." She continued with her woe. "If I walked into a church, I'd burst into a ball of flames."

Izzy continued to whine, horrified that she had gone through with such a scandalous plan. If her brothers or Father _(oh god, her father) _knew about the way she was conducting herself, they would ship her off to a nunnery in the middle of nowhere. The brunette washed the remaining suds out of her hair and stepped out of the shower, deciding that when she returned home, she would kill her best friend for brainwashing her into such a stupid plan. Izzy grabbed one of the towels, patting her hair so that it was semi-dry and wrapped herself in another towel.

Izzy swung the door open and stepped out into the room, nearly screaming bloody murder at her unannounced visitor. "Jesus Christ!" She swore loudly, not caring that her Grandmother used to slap her in the mouth every time she spoke like that. Mori casually rose from his spot on the edge of the bed as Izzy held a hand to her chest, heaving heavy breaths. "Oh...dear God.." She panted. "I...I think I'm having a heart attack," She gasped dramatically, not even taking notice of her boyfriend coming near her.

She straightened up once she realized he had crossed the room to tower above her. With a sense of panic, she noticed he had that same look in his eyes he had when she was straddling him just hours before. Izzy rolled her lips together, realizing the only thing giving her any sense of modesty was a towel. Hazel brown eyes widened at this realization and her heart began to violently hammer against her ribcage. She flexed, digging her toes into the carpet and took a quick step back to put some much needed space in between them.

"Is there something wrong? I'm not late for dinner or anything like that, right?" Izzy asked in a nervous voice, the height of her voice picked up drastically. Mori only shrugged, causing her eyebrows to knit together in confusion. Her eyes searched the room, finding the clock and seeing that she still had an hour before dinner.

"I know you're scheming," Mori stated after a long pause. Her gaze slid back towards him and she bit her bottom lip, missing his gaze flickering down to her lips. The giant reached up, pressing his thumb to her lip. "Tell me what you're up to."

Izzy let out a laugh, the pitch of her voice quivering. "There is no scheme and I'm not planning anything," She shook off the notion. Had she really been that transparent? Was it really obvious that she was trying to plan something?

Mori snorted, playing with her bottom lip. "You said it yourself, the Iba family are known for scheming. So, tell me what you're trying to accomplish," He stated with ease, watching as her face heated up drastically at being caught.

"Well..." She reached up to grab his wrist. She wouldn't be able to speak if he kept playing with her bottom lip like that. "Hisa asked me..." Izzy began to say only to pause when Mori let out a sigh, slumping his shoulders. He should have known this had everything to do with her psychotic best friend. She only shot him a look, twisting her lips up. "Well, Hisa asked me about our sex life," Izzy stated, her face burning like a neon light. "And I told her we don't really have one so she started saying that maybe you're not sexually attracted to me and that I should change my wardrobe to see if maybe you would become attracted."

"Ah..." Mori nodded along with her words, not even seeming to be fazed by her revelation. She frowned at his nonchalant attitude, confused at the lack of emotion of her silly scheming. He moved closer, causing her to take several steps backwards to avoid direct contact. "You're catholic," He reminded her simply, pausing in front of her as she back into the bathroom door. "Doesn't your religion frown upon sex before marriage?" Mori asked simply, watching in amusement as her face twitched.

"Yes but we haven't done..._anything _besides kissing," She felt ridiculous. She felt like a sixteen year old whining. "Hisa and I were just thinking maybe I'm too curvy or my legs might be too long or..." She trailed off, trying to name something that would turn him off about her. Mori eyed her blankly, reaching around her and grabbing at her towel covered rump again. She froze and her body stiffened. A taunting smirk graced his features and he squeezed his hand, causing her to squawk loudly. She forced herself backwards, pressing herself tightly to the door.

"_That's _why we haven't done anything."

"S-Shut up!"


	6. Frozen

_No one should be alone, not even if they're cursed. _

* * *

A lone female slumped in an elaborate throne made of shining ice. Her hair was twisted into a thick braid that sat over her left shoulder and her bangs were flicked back wildly. She was dressed in an ice-blue gown with a long slit up the left side of the dress. She twisted around in the throne so that her legs had been thrown over the arm of the throne. She leaned against the other arm, placing her elbow on the arm and balancing her head against her small fist.

The female smiled to herself, raising her unoccupied hand in front of her. Her eyes brightened as snowflakes began to form in the palm of her hand. She threw her hand out and suddenly the lonesome throne room was being decorated with falling snowflakes. A quiet giggle bubbled from her throat until it grew into a beautiful laugh. She was alone, so very lonely in the cold throne room made of ice. So lonely but so very satisfied. Although she had ran off, abandoning her rightful place as Queen, she felt so free.

"The cold never bothered me anyway," She muttered to herself, her smile never fading as she twisted her fingers. Silhouettes of people formed by the particles appeared, swaying around to an unknown dance as she watched from her ice throne. A voice suddenly echoed through the Ice Castle and it made Izzy freeze, tensing in her throne. All at once, everything stopped and seemed to just explode into a flurry. The lonely queen frowned at the storm literally brewing in her throne room.

"Izzy! Izzy, I know you can hear me!"

The brunette sighed heavily, eyebrows knitting together before slowly standing. The only sound that could be heard was the clicks of her heels against the ice floors as she left her throne room and traveled towards the voice calling for her. Izzy appeared at the top of the grand staircase, clutching the cold railing as her eyes found the source shouting. Ruining her tranquility. Down at the foot of her staircase was none other then her usually bubbly cousin, Fumiko.

Fumiko was the opposite of her older cousin with her black hair, blackberry eyes and love for the bright colors of pink. She stood with a surprised expression, staring up at the woman who had frozen the entire kingdom over.

"Oh, okay. Well, I wasn't expecting this," Fumiko stated, waving to the brunette. The queen frowned, hand on her hip as she stared down at Fumiko. "Well, I mean, you're just so gorgeous! Ah, not that you weren't before but you know...that dress just brings out everything and your hair! Wow. I mean, I wouldn't wear my hair like that but it totally looks good on you," Fumiko began to nervously babble as Izzy continued to watch her with an eyebrow quirked.

"Thank you, Fu. But what in the world are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to bring you back!"

Izzy sighed heavily. "I appreciate the effort but it's useless. I like it up here, I like being alone," She stated with a soft look in her eyes. Fumiko stubbornly shook her head, stomping her black boot against the hard floor. She was not going to accept that answer! Izzy didn't belong up in this lonely castle by herself. No, Fumiko was going to drag her cousin down this God-forsaken mountain, make her thaw the Kingdom and force her to take her rightful place as the Queen.

"No one likes being alone, Izzy."

Izzy sighed for the second time, slightly losing her calm demeanor. She noticed snow began to fall from practically nowhere and tried to remain calm. "Yes, I'm alone," She nodded slowly, her red lips pursing. "But I'm alone and _free."  
_

"But Izzy..."

"No," Izzy shook her head, halting her cousin's protest. "Go back down and leave me be, alright? I know you want it to go back to the way it was before when we were children but it just can't," Izzy took a deep breath, her lips pulling into a sad frown.

"But it can!"

"No, it' can't!"

The snow began to flutter more dangerously but Izzy stilled, taking another deep breath. Fumiko glanced around, noticing the changes taking place. She opened her mouth to say something but was cut off by another shout. Her eyebrows crinkled together as an animated snowman bounced into the room, coming at a stop next to Fumiko. Izzy's eyelids fluttered in confusion. "What the hell is that?" She pointed to the bubbly snowman. It seemed familiar.

"Hi! I'm Tamaki and I like warm hugs!" the snowman, named Tamaki, exclaimed. He waved the skinny sticks used as arms around in an excited motion. Izzy continued to stare at the snowman, slightly flabbergasted at the sight. Fumiko glanced down at the little bubbly snowman, smiling sweetly and crouching down next to him. Izzy continued to frown, slightly put off by the snowman's human-like eyes.

"Do you remember, Izzy? Just like the one we built as kids?"

Izzy continued to stare at the snowman. She remembered. And she remembered building him the second time when she ran off from her kingdom. She glanced down at her hands, slightly surprised that her cursed power actually gave _life _to something. But she was still dangerous and it was better to seclude herself.

"Leave. And take Tamaki with you," Izzy ordered, turning in a flurry to hurry away. She heard Fumiko let out a huff before the sound of her boots were pounding up the staircase after her. Izzy groaned internally as Fumiko followed her into another room of the castle.

"It will be different this time, Izzy. I promise. I will be right here, so just come back.."

"You never listen to me, do you? Just go home, be with Kyoya and enjoy the sun."

"Ah...well...you see about that..."

Izzy frowned in confusion, peeking over shoulder. "See about what?"

"So you really don't know?"

"What do I not know?"

Fumiko smiled nervously, not exactly sure how Izzy would react to what she was about to say. "Italia is in deep, deep, deep deep...snow..." She winced at the revelation, seeing the horror and confusion that crossed Izzy's face. Izzy whipped around, eyes wide with horror. She twisted her hands into the fabric of her gown and shoving the train out of the way as she took a step towards Fumiko.

"_What?" _

"You may have...and I'm not saying it's your fault...set off an eternal winter...everywhere."

"Everywhere?"_  
_

Her eyes suddenly brightened as she seemingly jumped up with new energy. "It's okay though! You can just unfreeze it," She stated with a wide grin. Izzy only grimaced, realizing that Fumiko just didn't understand that it wasn't that simple.

"No, I can't. I don't know how."

"Yes you can! I know you can!"

Izzy glared at her, hands on her hips. "What did I just say? I literally just told you I don't know how to unfreeze it. This is the reason I need to be alone. Don't you see? I can't control this goddamn curse!" Izzy growled at her younger cousin.

But Fumiko did not falter. She shook her hair, her twin braids twitching with the motion. "We can fix this, Izzy. We can fix it together, okay? We'll reverse the storm you've made..."

"You're just making it worse!" Izzy accused as the snow began to pick up violently.

Fumiko glanced around, shielding her face with her gloved hand as the snow mercilessly pelted her. "Don't panic. Just calm down, calm down and we'll make everything okay!" She nearly shouted over the screaming wind.

"You just don't understand," Izzy violently shook her head. "You just don't get how scared I am, there's so much fear," She looked as if she was about to cry, staring at her hands. "You should go, you're not safe here..."

"Everything will be alright..."

Izzy could feel the power surging along with her anger. Fumiko just didn't get it. It wasn't that easy, she couldn't just snap her fingers and make it all go away. None of them got it, not her parents, not her brothers and certainly like Fumiko. Before she could explode with anger at being forced to do something that she just couldn't do, another shout interrupted the squabbling duo. The two girls turned towards the large door of the room to see the snowman come bustling in.

"Hi! I'm Tamaki and I like warm hugs!" He exclaimed for the second time, looking in between the two. Th cousins both blinked, slightly thrown off with the new change of atmosphere. The snowstorm that had begun to brew had started to ease down into a soft flutter of snowflakes.

"Um..."

"Tamaki..."

"Do you wanna build a snowman!?"


	7. Christmas

_Christmas was about spending time with one another, no matter how abusive they were._

* * *

"How is the baking coming along, ladies?!"

"Shut up and go decorate before I hurt you."

Haruhi dropped her head, snorting in amusement while Fumiko giggled behind her flour-stained hand. Izzy glared in annoyance, stirring the eggs while Tamaki pouted at the brunette's harsh command. "Why are you so upset, my white lily? Don't you love baking?"

Izzy rolled her eyes, placing the bowl down on the counter. "You're a sexist idiot, that's why I'm upset. I don't want to be in this kitchen making a bunch of sweets that Hani will end up sucking up like a vacuum cleaner," the brunette hissed at him, hand on her hip.

Tamaki shook his blond head, a simple smile on his face. "It doesn't matter who eats the sweets, my lily. All that matters is that we stick to tradition. And a Christmas tradition calls for a feast! And at a feast, there are sweets. And who makes the sweets and the other food? Women, of course!"

Izzy drummed her fingernails against the counter. At this point, Haruhi was shaking her head at his stupidity. Fumiko, although she was more bubbly, frowned softly. "I swear to God, if you don't leave this kitchen right now, I'm going to stab you," Izzy threatened darkly. Tamaki let out a small squeak and quickly ran from the large kitchen. Izzy rolled her eyes again for the second time and turned back to the bowl of eggs that she had abandoned. For the holiday season, Tamaki had decided that it was only right that the Host Club_ (and Fumiko)_ spent the holiday together.

It was no secret that their families were too busy to spend the holidays with their kids. It really didn't faze any of them since they were all used to their families' busy work schedules. Taking care of million dollar companies just wasn't easy work. And that's when Tamaki had the big idea of not only spending the holiday together but also preparing their Christmas dinner and decorating without any of the help of their maids and butlers. He had decided that all of the decorating would be left to him and the boys and all of the cooking would be up to Izzy, Fumiko and Haruhi.

"This is ridiculous," Izzy grumbled, not even realizing that she had a streak of flour across her forehead. "Of course Tamaki would make us do all the cooking," She snorted, stirring the eggs a little too hard. "Sexist pig. And of course those idiots would agree with him."

Fumiko smiled in amusement as her cousin continued to rant. "Izzy, I know it's a little sexist to make us cook," She began to say, pausing in preparing the snowflake cookies to turn to Izzy. She quirked an eyebrow, watching Izzy violently abuse the bowl of eggs. "You're going to end up splashing the eggs everywhere, stop that," She quickly pointed out.

Izzy huffed but heeded the warning, easing up on the stirring. "But...his heart is in the right place. He just wants us all to experience a lovely Christmas with each other," She pointed out with a kind smile. "And besides, you and Haruhi are the only one who can really be trusted in the kitchen without supervision. Could you imagine what would happen if any of our boys decided to do the cooking?" Fumiko snorted in an unladylike manner at the thought.

"They would probably freak out if they got any flour on their faces. Or God forbid them getting batter under their nails," Haruhi laughed at the thought of any of them in the kitchen. It was Izzy's turn to snort in humor. She reached up to cup her chin and shook her head, getting flour across her jaw. They could hear shouting from the dining room. It sounded like Tamaki was scolding the twins for whatever they were doing. Haruhi rolled her eyes and approached the doorway to the kitchen. She joined in with the shouting but with more a harsh edge to her voice for them to shut up and get their act together.

"You would think that Tamaki being nineteen and the twins being eighteen, they would be more mature," Haruhi sighed heavily as she made her way back to the gingerbread cookies she was in charge of making. "Something should have changed by now."

"Ha," Izzy let out a dry laugh. "Good one," Izzy stirred the batter together, mixing two tablespoons of bourbon into it. "I hope this eggnog cake isn't too much for everyone," She frowned thoughtfully, head titled to the side. "Ah, it's just two tablespoons of bourbon. That's not so much, right? Americans drink this all the time. And besides, we drink champagne at those galas and balls, right?"

Fumiko giggled as her cousin fretted over the alcohol intake they would be subjected to. "Well, maybe only Hani, Takashi and I can have this cake," Izzy mumbled to herself, biting at one of her nails in thought.

"It'll be fine. It's not that much," Fumiko flagged Izzy's concern off. "We've all had champagne and sake. And wine from Uncle Al's winery," the little Asian maiden chuckled at Izzy's sisterly concern for the rest of them.

"That cake won't be finished for dinner if you don't stop worrying," Haruhi reminded her smoothly. If she had learned something from her years of being best friends with Izzy, it was that the Italian native hated being late.

* * *

Izzy looked at the counter of desserts, making sure that everything was fine. She had sent Haruhi and Fumiko off to shower and get ready for dinner. The brunette sighed, running her fingers through her hair and tangling flour into her locks. "Merry Christmas," She mumbled softly, looking around the kitchen. They would clean up later, she had decided. Three years ago, she never would have believed she would be doing something like this with a large group of friends that she really loved and cherished.

She smiled softly, shaking her head in humored amusement. Even though she had hated her Mother's decision in sending her to Japan for her last year of high school at the start, she was now grateful for that choice. If not for that choice, she would be spending Christmas alone. Or maybe with Carmen and Leo. Who knew?

Mori poked his head into the kitchen after realizing his girlfriend had yet to make an appearance after Haruhi and Fumiko already had. Izzy glanced up and blinked at him, frowning. "Ah! Don't come in here! Don't look," She squeaked out, rushing forward to push him out of the kitchen. "None of you are supposed to see any of the desserts. Where's Hani? He knows he's not allowed in here specifically," She reminded him, eyes darting around.

"Mitsukuni is getting ready like everyone else. Like you should be doing right now," Mori reminded her. He reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "You have flour and cake batter all over your face and in your hair," He pointed out, a spark of amusement lighting up his dark eyes.

"Do I?" She turned away to one of the large mirrors strung up in the hallway they were residing in. "Ah," She giggled at her messy appearance. "Didn't even notice. What a mess," She mused, bringing the sleeve of her old ratty sweater up to rub at her face. It didn't do much but smudge the flour. Mori quietly watched as fretted over her appearance, twisting up her lips and quirking her eyebrows to make funny faces to go along with her funny appearance. A smile broke his usual stoic facade as he continued to watch her.

After some time, he approached her and slung his arms around her waist. She paused, looking at him in the mirror as he settled his chin on her shoulder. Her funny faces quickly stopped and she smiled more sweetly. "Are you happy, Bera?" He asked after a long moment.

Her smaller hands reached up, settling over his larger ones. "Of course I'm happy," She answered with a soft laugh. "With everything. This silly Christmas dinner, our silly friends," She began to list things off. She twisted around in his grasp, weaving her arms around his neck and tilting her head back so that she could clearly look him straight in the eye.

"And you."

Her lips tasted like eggnog, he noted.

* * *

"Hani, don't you even try it. Dinner first."

"But Berry-Chan..."

"Tamaki, stop screaming."

"Boys, please stop harassing Haruhi."

"This isn't funny, Takashi."

"Ah, of course not."

"Mama! Our niece is being eviiiil!"

"Shut up, Tamaki."

"Boss is so stupid."

"Very."

Fumiko giggled as her friends continued to bicker despite everything. They were supposed to be enjoying their dinner and the atmosphere together. But of course, they were all too busy bickering, scolding, threatening and shouting at each other. If an outsider were to peek in and witness any of this, they would have assumed that they were all verbally abusive to one another. And maybe they were right. Maybe they were a little too abusive towards one another.

But it was just...how they were. The abuse wasn't...it wasn't taken in a bad way. She knew that made no sense and if she tried to explain it to an outsider, they would think she was promoting abuse. But it was honestly how they showed their affection to one another. It was just what they were used to.

Next to her, she noticed Kyoya quietly eating even though the others were still bickering. She leaned over to him, smiling softly. "How is the ham?" Fumiko asked with hope gleaming in her eyes. She wasn't like Haruhi and Izzy. She wasn't really gifted when it came to cooking. Haruhi had been cooking all her life since her Mother's death, she was practically a God in the kitchen. And as for Izzy, even though she was wealthy, she knew her way around the kitchen. She had stated that it was in the genetic coding of an Italian woman to know how to cook. Or, that's what Al's Mother had said when she taught her to cook.

"It's very well cooked," Kyoya answered truthfully, turning a kind smile to his small girlfriend. Fumiko's eyes brightened and she straightened up with a great big smile, twisting her fingers through her dark hair.

"I cooked it," She beamed brightly. Kyoya's eyebrows raised in surprise and he nodded, raining compliments and approval down on Fumiko. He knew she had less confidence, especially when she compared herself to both Izzy and Haruhi.

Kyoya's hand came up to cup the back of her head and leaned over, kissing her affectionately on her cheek. "You did wonderful," He complimented in that sincere way that he only allowed her to see. If it was possible, her beaming smile brightened up.

"Did you get us gifts, Izzy?" Hikaru leaned over the table, waving in the tall brunette's face. Said brunette rolled her eyes, balancing her chin in the palm of her hand.

"I got you the gift of my presence," She stated in a bland voice, huffing when Mori elbowed her. She shot him a look and pouted before turning back to Hikaru. "Of course I got you all gifts," Izzy rolled her eyes. "What kind of big sister would I be if I show up with nothing?"

Hikaru grinned at her, lightly teasing her. She rolled her eyes for the second time in ten minutes and waved him off in favor of speaking with Haruhi. Tamaki smiled brightly, bright eyes darting around the dining room in happiness. This had turned out better than he thought. The house had been decorated without any of them destroying anything, the desserts along with the rest of the meal was a success and no one had been hurt or murdered and they all made it to the table without problems.

This was his Merry Christmas.


	8. Humans and Witches

_In which Tamaki is convinced those witches are going to eat the towns' children and those witches are completely done with humans._

* * *

"But why can't we just go? Just for a little bit? I promise I won't don't anything to reveal us!"

A tall brunette continued down the dirt path, an annoyed expression etched on her features. She sighed heavily, peeking over her shoulder at her younger cousin. "Shut up, Fumiko," She uttered blankly, turning back to hurry down the path.

Fumiko let out a loud grumble, following after her stubborn cousin. "Oh come on, don't be like that! It's been so long since we've interacted with someone else besides each other, Izzy. Don't you want to talk to someone besides me? Don't you want to be annoyed by someone besides me?" Fumiko caught up the brunette, poking and prodding at her.

Izzy rolled her eyes, batting the offending hands away. "Hisa annoys me just as much as you do," She stated simply, taking a swift turn and finally coming upon a large cottage in the middle of a clearing. The door creaked open seemingly on its own but neither girls questioned it. Both girls swept their cloaks off, hanging it up by the other door. Izzy frowned, smelling the air. "Someone is experimenting in the kitchen," She mumbled as the foul smelling odor wafted around the two, bathing them in it.

"It's probably Hisa," Fumiko sighed as the two ventured to the kitchen. Sure enough, behind a cluttered mess of strange ingredients was Hisa. The honey-blonde looked as if she was trying hard to concentrate. Izzy leaned against the frame of the door while Fumiko peeked innocently around her.

"I wouldn't do that," Izzy sung out as Hisa picked up a vial of light green liquid.

The honey-blonde glanced up, eyes narrowed. "Oh, shut up. I know what I'm doing."

Izzy only folded her arms and shrugged one shoulder. Hisa poured the green substance into a large jar filled with dark blue liquid. Several seconds passed and nothing seemed to happen other than a fizzle coming from the jar. Hisa glanced up, a smirk flitting across her lips. The fizzle became more violent before erupting, spewing liquid chunks and smoke into Hisa's face and all around the honey-blonde. Fumiko let out a little gasp, covering her lips in horror. Izzy, however, remained blank faced. Several minutes clocked by as chunky liquid dripped down from the ceiling to the floor.

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong," Izzy began to say, pausing long enough to allow Hisa to sigh loudly. "But I'm one-hundred percent sure that wasn't supposed to happen. Unless, of course, you wanted to be blasted in the face by an odd substance that resembles throw-up?"

"Burn in Hell," Hisa hissed past clenched teeth. "I don't understand, it was supposed to turn into a darker green. Not explode in my face. Where's Haruhi?" the honey-blonde huffed, wiping goop from falling into her eyes.

"I'm not sure but meanwhile..." Izzy stepped into the room and waved her hand. Green sparks flitted from her fingertips and seemingly attacked at the mess of blueish-green goop, disappearing as if nothing ever happened. "Honestly, you would think you're old enough to create potions without supervision by now," Izzy rolled her eyes and approached the island with Fumiko on her heels.

"I was being serious when I said burn in Hell."

"Well, I've been there and it's honestly not as hot as people believe."

"I honestly don't need this right now."

Izzy smiled in wry amusement as Hisa huffed again. "We should clean this up and start supper," Fumiko stated, waving her hands. The ingredients cluttering the table began to float on their own and began to shift and find their rightful spots on the shelves around the kitchen. "Haruhi should be getting home soon, I think she's making stew tonight."

"Don't let Hisa help out."

"Izzy!"

* * *

"A band of witches, you say?" a tall blond leaned over the bar, amethyst eyes sparkling in wonder. "I didn't know witches lived so close to this town," he babbled, completely interested in the topic of subject.

"Tamaki..." Kyoya sighed heavily from next to him, already knowing where this was going. "We don't have time to go on some heroic escapade right now. You know Hani is expecting the three of us on his birthday."

Mori grunted from the other side of Tamaki. "We're already a day behind as it is," He agreed with a deep grumble. Honestly, if Tamaki hadn't insisted on running after those band of thieves, they would be on the right track. Hani was going to murder the three of them if they missed his birthday. He knew he should've just traveled on his own.

"But...they're witches," Tamaki hissed, waving his arms above his head. "Who knows what type of deadly plot those women could be coming up with?" He asked, eyes wide in horror. Both Kyoya and Mori sighed, already knowing where this was going. "We must stop their evil plot before they kidnap all the children and eat them!"

"And why would they do that?"

"To retain their youth, of course."

Mori only sighed, slumping into the bar as Tamaki demanded more information from the barkeep. The blond would not stop until they hunted those witches down and in his words, 'brought them to justice'. Whatever the hell that meant. Hani was going to kill them.

* * *

Kyoya was on the verge of throwing one of his daggers into the back of Tamaki's neck as the excitable blond went gallivanting into the forest. The blond wasn't even trying to read the map, he just wanted to run around the forest until they happened across something. "Perhaps if we just leave him..."

"Kyoya..."

Kyoya's dark eyes followed Tamaki's hyperactive movements. "He's going to end up getting us lost if we don't calm him down. I'd rather not get lost in a forest I'm unfamiliar with," the bespectacled young man stated with a heavy sigh. Mori agreed with his words, knowing full well that if they allowed Tamaki to keep running around, they would get lost. And they still knew nothing about the so called band of witches living somewhere deep in the forest. Whose to say they weren't already aware of their presence, thanks to Tamaki's loud movements?

"Tamaki, come back here and let us see the map. You're going to end up running us around in aimless circles," Mori's deep voice rung out through the forest, halting the blond's rapid movements. Tamaki paused and pouted, not wanting to be the blame for getting them lost. They were already annoyed with his need and obsession to go off onto side quests and be a hero.

He obediently did as he was told, showing his two companions the map the barkeep had drew up for them the night before. The three males gathered around to study the map. All they had to do was walk towards the east until they came across a river. Once they crossed the river, there would be a dirt path. They would have to follow the dirt path until they came to an old crooked tree. If they took a right, they would be led to a clearing where they would find a cottage in the middle of the clearing.

"Seems simple enough," Tamaki said with a bright smile. "See, we'll be finished before the sun goes down and then we'll be on our way to Hani's for his birthday. Nothing to worry about, gentlemen."

Kyoya and Mori only shared a look. For one reason or another, they both felt like this side trip would be anything but simple.

* * *

Izzy frowned as she stepped onto the porch on the cottage, a bowl of last night's stew in her hand. Her eyebrows knitted together and her hazel brown eyes squinted. She heard the door open but didn't bother to turn her eyes away from the forest. "What's bothering you?" Haruhi asked. She was also armed with a bowl but the contents were considerably different. She leaned against the railing, balancing the bowl on it and stirring whatever was in the bowl.

`Izzy finally tore her eyes from the forest, glancing down at the bowl in Haruhi's hands. She quirked an eyebrow but said nothing. "It's nothing," She shrugged her tanned shoulders. "What are you making?" She leaned over, peeking into the bowl and frowning at the color.

"A sleeping potion," Haruhi stated simply. Izzy frowned at that, quirking one eyebrow. Haruhi only sighed heavily, hoping her friend wouldn't get defensive. "I know you haven't been sleeping right lately. The anniversary of your family's passing is coming up soon, isn't it?"

Izzy's shoulders hunched and she drew into herself. "Yes. But that has nothing to do with my sleeping habits," She pointed out with a frown. Haruhi only hummed, not wanting to argue with the older brunette. She knew as well as their other housemates that Izzy always got a little fussy around this time. They usually tried not to anger her.

"Fu has been asking to go into town more and more, hasn't she?" Haruhi suddenly asked, hoping Izzy wouldn't lose her temper. Out of the four of them, Izzy usually had the shortest fuse. "I think it would be a good idea to go into town more often then we do. The townspeople are different, don't you think?"

Izzy folded her arms stubbornly. "Humans never change," She said with a hard edge to her voice. "If they find out about us being witches or remember my parents, they will do what they did to them. And it will be a cold day in Hell before I let that happen to any of you."

"Not all humans are bad, Izzy. You must realize this and let your grudge go."

"Hm, yes, because witnessing your family being burned alive is just so easy to let go. Not to mention those vile humans tried to carve my eye out for whatever reason. But yes, I certainly should let it go and go dancing with them in the middle of the town's square!" Izzy suddenly exclaimed, her fuse finally shortening out.

She hated talking about her parents or humans. The girls knew that but they constantly pushed and pushed about interacting with those humans. She didn't care what any of them said, humans were terrible creatures. If a human was able to burn a child's parents before their eyes and proceeded to try to gouge that child's eyes out, why would she think any of them could have even a tear of goodness in them?

Haruhi shook her head. "I never said you should go dancing in the square with them," She pointed out with a blank expression. She was trying to remain calm. The last thing any of them needed was Izzy losing her temper and blasting them all into the next town. "But I don't think we all should be cooped up in this cottage like this. Your fear is keeping us all from living normal lives."

Izzy scoffed at that. "A normal life?" She snorted with raised eyebrows. "We're witches, Haruhi. We're not normal, we don't live normal lives."

"Thanks to you we don't."

Izzy bristled at that statement. What was this, a mutiny? Were they all going to turn on her? Didn't they understand that all she was trying to do was protect them? Of course they didn't understand. They all had normal lives, Fu and Hisa's parents were still alive and Haruhi's Mother had died from a sickness long ago but her Father was also still alive.

They hadn't experienced just how cruel humans could be to other forms of life simply because they were different. They didn't have an ugly scar marring their faces, reminding them of something they couldn't forget. They didn't witness their parents being burned alive, smelling their cooked skin or hearing their agonized screams.

"I told each of your parents I would do everything to protect you and teach you how to hone your witchcraft," She began to say in a cool, even-tempered voice. "Unlike the three of you, they understand just how harsh humans can be to our kind or any life form," Her voice grew colder with each word. "They've seen things worse then I have I suppose and thought I would be a good enough teacher and protector for the three of you."

There was a long pause between the brunettes as the words sunk in. "However, if you really don't agree with the life I've made for you, you are all free to go and live as you see fit. I won't stop you. But I will not sit here and listen to this nonsense." Izzy whirled around in a flutter of curly brown hair and quickly set off down the wooden steps. Haruhi said nothing, watching as the older brunette vanished off into the trees. She sighed, figuring it would be best if Izzy was left alone to blow off some steam.

Even if they did have the opportunity to leave, Haruhi doubted any of them would. They had grown accustomed, attached to one another. They were a family, as odd as they all were. And she knew Izzy didn't want any of them to leave her, she'd be lonely without the three of them. But still, it wasn't a way to live, cooped up in their little cottage.

The front door opened and Hisa and Fumiko came fluttering out. "Told you she would get pissy if you mentioned her parents," Hisa twisted and leaned the back of her waist against the railing. Haruhi only sighed, finally looking away from the direction Izzy had stormed off into.

"You know how she is," Fumiko said with a tired smile. "She's really stubborn, we should just let her cool off. At least she didn't blow our house up like last time."

"She's such a drama queen."

* * *

It was only hours later when Haruhi burst into the clearing, looking frantic. Her chocolate brown eyes were frantic as she searched the area. Finally, her gaze settled on the two older women. Hisa and Izzy was near the edge of the forest, Izzy crouched over a medium sized bushel as Hisa read something to her.

"Izzy! Hisa!" Haruhi was darting across the clearing to the two older witches. The two turned to her, identical looks of curiosity gracing their pretty faces. Izzy was just standing up to dust her skirt off of any dirt when the younger brunette nearly barreled into them. "We have a problem," She panted out as Hisa caught her by the shoulders.

"What in the world is going on?"

Haruhi nervously twisted at her fingers. Izzy was going to flip. She glanced at the older witch and sent a silent prayer that she would remain calm. "Fu and I were exploring closer to the town," She began to say, noticing how hard Izzy's expression became. "And three men came and well...we tried to run off but they fired this weird thing and a net captured Fu and..."

"Oh for the love of..." Izzy growled angrily.

"Interesting.." Hisa mumbled as Izzy vanished.

* * *

"Stop poking me!" Fumiko wailed as the lanky blond continued to poke and prod at her with the hilt of one of his daggers. She and Haruhi had been standing on a cliff that overlooked the town when the trio of men came completely out of nowhere. If the blond hadn't been screeching at the top of his lungs, neither of them would have heard him. Both she and Haruhi had tried to vanish back into the darkness of the forest but that tricky blond fired a net at her. The net slung around her body, trapping her arms by her sides and causing her to drop in a heap.

The taller dark haired one had cautiously approached her while Haruhi successfully made it into the trees away. Fumiko knew Haruhi wasn't abandoning her, she was running off to get Izzy. But still, Fumiko was terrified as the giant grabbed her by her hands and wrestled them behind her back to tie a thick rope around her wrists.

With her hands bound, she was completely useless. Izzy would scold her for not being powerful enough to just cast a spell without the use of her hands. _'If you weren't so obsessed with going into town, you could have studied to learn how to cast a spell without your hands'_, she would say with a roll of those hazel brown eyes. Fumiko pouted, ignoring the feeling of the hilt digging into her ribs for the umpteenth time.

"Why are you poking her?" Kyoya asked Tamaki with a bland look. He had honestly been surprised they managed to come across two witches and capture one. At first he hadn't even been sure that the black haired woman was a witch to begin with.

She looked normal enough with jet black hair that reached past her shoulders and eyes that were like blackberries. She was dressed in innocent shades of pink and white that seemed normal. She even had a cute spray of freckles dusting across her face. The only thing that was out of place about her was her elfish ears. The tips of her ears were pointed instead of being rounded.

Tamaki paused at his poking and prodding. "Because she doesn't look like a witch. She doesn't have the aura of a witch, can't they cast spells? Why haven't you cast a spell yet, witch?" Tamaki demanded, resuming his poking. Fumiko only pouted, opting in not telling him she hadn't been able to cast a spell because she had panicked and had simply been too frazzled to even think of one. Izzy was going to have a field day when she caught wind of this. God, Izzy was like a sore-winner when it came to being right.

"Perhaps she's not a witch."

"Impossible, look at her ears. Plus, her beauty seems unnatural."

"She could be an elf."

"Perhaps...well...are you an elf?"

A particular hard jab had her gasping in pain. "Would you stop that?!" She huffed in annoyance. God, she swore if she escaped, she was going to turn that blond into a tree or something. "And no, I'm not an elf! Just because we have pointed ears doesn't automatically make us elves. How stereotypical!"

The trio was quiet as they continued to study her. If this was the witch who was supposedly plotting to kidnap children to feast on, she certainly was a disappointment. Tamaki pouted at that. Didn't she understand he was trying to be a hero? Her innocent appearance just wasn't helping the cause.

There was sudden a green spark that exploded, blinding them. Something invisible slammed into each of them, throwing them several feet backwards. Once they had settled and the light faded, they were surprised to see the arrival of three more females with unnatural beauty paired with elfish ears. The one who stood front and center eyed them cautiously before holding her hand up and beckoning to them.

The dagger Tamaki had been using to poke Fumiko was ripped from his hand by another invisible force. It flew across the space between them and the witch caught it with ease. She eyed it with curious eyes before tossing it to the small brunette that was crouching next to their captured witch.

Mori was the first to climb back to his feet, dark eyes focused on the witch who was in the front. She was the one who seemed the most dangerous out of them. She looked almost out of place next to the other witches. She stood tall with tanned skin and an unnatural but foreign beautiful face. He noticed, however, the scar starting just under her eyebrow and stopping below the top of her cheekbone.

She looked different compared to honey-blonde dressed in scraps of red next to her. Her lips were too plump and her eyes were too bright. Her hair was a mass of brown curls with blonde streaks. She was dressed in forest green and black, her shirt was cut a little low, revealing more of her tanned skin. Her skirt was long, reaching her sandal clad feet but the slits in the skirt reached to her hips.

If anything, she resembled more of a gypsy that were commonly found in Europe. But her actions of taking Tamaki's dagger revealed her true nature and he watched her carefully, ready to slit her throat if she proved to be a danger to him or his companions.

The small brunette, who wasn't revealing any skin like the other two, finally managed to cut the first witch free. She helped her up and the black-haired witch stood with a huff. The curly haired brunette turned long enough to make sure there was no mortal wounds. Mori unsheathed the sword and held it up in line with the brunette's neck when she turned back to face them. He could easily tell by her stance and actions that she was the leader. He would not let his guard down just because she was a pretty face with nice legs.

"You are the band of witches we've heard about," Tamaki stated from somewhere behind Mori. The brunette said nothing, only quirking an eyebrow. There was only four of them so Mori would hardly call that a band. Something told him the witch was thinking of something similar.

"Is there a reason you've come marching into our forest and disturbing the peace?" She finally spoke, her voice coming out sounding cool and apathetic. Still, Mori would not let his guard down. Witches were tricky seductresses.

"We're here to put a stop to your evil plan."

"Evil plan?"

"Yes, your evil plan to kidnap the towns' children."

"Uh-huh...and why would we do that?"

"To eat them, of course."

The witches reacted oddly. The honey-blonde seemed thoroughly disgusted, the black-haired witch looked horrified, the small brunette seemed surprised and the tall brunette's face blanked out. They glanced at one another, obviously trying to gouge their reactions. "We're witches, you know? Not cannibals," the small brunette suddenly spoke up, her voice surprisingly deep for a female as small as she was. The honey-blonde was suddenly laughing, turning her head away as her face burned bright with laughter. "Why exactly would we eat children?"

"To retain your youthful beauty."

Hisa began cackling with laughter, doubling over and clutching at her sides. Izzy pressed her fingers to her forehead, rubbing them roughly across her face. "For the love of..." She grumbled with annoyance. "You humans...always so quick to judge people. One coven of witches did that and it was fifty years ago, we don't eat children."

"But you admit witches are willing to eat children!" Tamaki exclaimed, springing out from behind Mori's intimidating form. Izzy's eyes narrowed in a scolding way and Tamaki shrank back, peering behind Mori's muscled form in an almost comedic way.

"Oh, please. As if humans don't eat other humans? What makes what those witches so different? The fact that they ate children?"

"Not only are humans stereotypical, they're also hypocrites," Hisa sang out in amusement, her cackles finally dying down to just giggles and sniffles. Izzy only rolled her eyes, finding no amusement in this whole situation.

"You didn't tell us how stupid humans are," Haruhi commented dryly, finally causing Izzy to snort in humor.

"Or how horribly rude they are," Fumiko pouted, rubbing her abused side. Knowing how she easily bruised, her side was probably going to swell up with bruises soon. She huffed, trying to remember a spell that would easily take care of that.

"Well," Izzy's hand went to the slope of her hip, cocking her hip out and tapping her foot against the dirt ground. "I thought telling you how barbaric they could be would be enough to stay away from them. Apparently you have to witness their stupidity, their rudeness and their backwards beliefs to believe me."

"Barbaric!?" Tamaki shouted in obvious offense. "You're the ones eating children!" He accused, pointing a finger at them. Mori sighed heavily, lowering his sword. At this point, he doubted these witches were out for their blood. If anything, they just seemed extremely annoyed.

"I'm sick of your shouting," Izzy snapped, snapping her fingers. Tamaki made a funny noise and Izzy smirked, opening her palm up as a small ball of light appeared in her hand. "You can have this back when you learn that you don't have to scream at everyone to make a point, understand?"

Mori and Kyoya glanced at one another as Tamaki made horrified muffled noises, waving his arms in a windmill like fashion. "...What did you do to him?" Kyoya broke the silence, finally speaking up since the three witches came to Fumiko's aid. He eyed the ball of light warily, slightly uneasy about what these women were capable of.

"I took his voice."

"...Is it possible to keep it?"

Izzy quirked an eyebrow at the question and glanced at the blond. He was crying silent tears of the betrayal of his best friend while Mori snorted. Behind her, Fumiko giggled at the words. "They're funny," She said between giggles.

"I think...this is all just a big misunderstanding," Haruhi suddenly stated, looking in between the trio of men and her fellow witches. "They don't seem like they want to cause us any harm," She continued to say. "In fact, I doubt they had any plans to murder us. They probably were just going to capture us and hand us over to the townspeople. I think the blond one just wanted to be a hero."

The muffled cries of Tamaki halted and he pouted. "So it seems," Hisa hummed casually, flicking her hair behind her shoulder. "Well, if anything, they sure are attractive," She hummed sensually, licking her bottom lip.

"Down girl," Izzy hummed blandly, ignoring the feeling of Hisa glaring holes into the side of her face. "Well, if that's the case, take back your screechy voice and leave the forest. I don't have time for this," She grumbled, flinging the ball of light back at Tamaki. Fumiko frowned, looking at the trio. They didn't seem like bad people. Just misunderstood. Oddly enough, she was curious to know more about them.

"...Would you like to join us for some supper?"

* * *

"This is ridiculous," Izzy grumbled as Fumiko and Haruhi bustled about their kitchen. Somehow Fumiko had convinced her to let the trio of men join them for supper back at their cabin. She didn't understand why Fumiko was being so kind, she had been the one subjected to Tamaki's rude poking and prodding. In the next room over, Hisa entertained their guests. How, Izzy wasn't sure. She wouldn't put it past the blonde to slink around those boys like some seductive sex-kitten. Frowning at the thought, she quickly left to make sure Hisa wasn't doing such a thing.

Nope. She was actually casting little spells to wow them. Well, to wow Tamaki. He was the only one who seemed amazed and excited about the spell casting. Both Mori and Kyoya were watching, they just weren't cheering like a child every time her hands light up. Rolling her eyes at the humans, Izzy turned away to the front door. She glanced around the clearing and remembered she had been picking herbs to use as ingredients for potions. The leggy brunette found the abandoned bowl that was half-full and the dusty book Hisa had been reading from.

With a heavy sigh, she sat down in her spot and began picking through the bush for more herbs. It wasn't long until heavy footsteps alerted her to another presence. They were too heavy to be any of the girls so she knew it was one of the guests. And judging just how heavy the steps were, it was the tallest of the guests. Mori, she remembered his name to be. Well, nickname.

For a human, he was absolutely attractive. Of course, it would be a cold day in Hell before she admitted that out loud. No matter how attractive, no human would sway her. They were all bad people no matter what. She would not let him get past her barrier just because he was sinfully gorgeous.

"What happened to your eye?"

She paused, quirking an eyebrow. She threw a glance over her shoulder at him. A frown twisted at her plump lips as he watched with slight interest. Glancing at the bowl, he guessed she was picking herbs. However, it just seemed like a pile of weeds to him. "That's pretty bold to ask," Izzy stated after a long time. "Usually, when people are trying to get to know one another, they start with more innocent questions, don't they? Like what's your favorite color?"

"Your favorite color is green."

"How do you figure?"

Mori only scanned her form and she looked down at herself, realizing she was dressed in nothing but primarily green with a little splash of black here and there. "I suppose that's a good point," She nodded along with his silent answer. "However...just because you know my favorite color doesn't mean I should just tell you about this scar. It's personal, you know?"

She blinked when Mori's larger form settled down next to her, sitting a bit too close. "What do you want from me? It's no secret that I'm not particularly fond of humans. And yet...here you are. You could be inside, acknowledging Hisa's flirtatious advances. I think she likes you the most."

He seemed slightly disturbed at the reminder of Hisa's behavior. Why exactly was he out here trying to get to know a horribly stubborn witch with an unnerving amount of hate for humans? Why had he left the pushy but friendly Hisa to accompany this grumpy brunette? Perhaps it was because she was the first to openly ignore him instead of shamelessly flirting with him or his friends. She wanted nothing to do with any of them. Maybe that's why. Maybe he just wanted to know what happened to her face. How could someone ruin her face like that? Why would they do that? He wanted to know.

It was the chase. Chasing after someone who was playing hard to get. That's the problem. He was used to females boldly throwing themselves at him. He had never once come across a female who openly ignored his attractiveness like this grumpy witch.

It was a vain and spoiled reason but he was human. He was only human and he had fallen into a cycle of just expecting women to come flocking at him. Not turn away with a huff and a roll of the eyes. That completely piqued his interest.

"I want to know why you hate humans," Mori rumbled out in his deep voice. There was no way in Hell he would admit that he was put off by her oblivious actions towards him. She already thought humans were barbaric. And probably rude, hypocritical, and stupid. He didn't need her to think they were horribly vain. Although they really were.

"I thought we've already been over this. You're barbarians and close-minded."

Well, that was new one.

"How did you come to that conclusion?"

Izzy sighed but slumped her shoulders. Maybe if she just told him, he would leave her alone. "When I was six, the village I lived by with my family discovered my family's background. They ambushed us, strung my parents and my older brothers up on stakes and burned them alive, forcing me to watch them," She began to recount, remembering each detail of that horrible night.

"When my family was nothing but melted skin and burnt bones," She noticed his face wrinkled up at the thought. "They beat me ruthlessly and one of the villagers had this strange obsession with my eyes. He said they were too light, unnerving. He thought they were 'all seeing', whatever the hell that meant," She shrugged, her eyes glazing over at the memory.

"So, he took a dull knife and stabbed it into my face, just above my eyebrow," She pointed to the beginning of the scar. "And well...basically he tried to gouge my eye out of my face. Something stopped him, I don't know what, but I took my chance and just ran. I came back later to retrieve my family's bones so I could at least bury them. But they were waiting and refused to let me have my family. They said they would use their burned bodies as warnings."

It was quiet as she finished up her story. He noticed, sitting as close as he was, that she also had a mole just under the corner of her other eye. That mole, a beauty mark, was more befitting of her face versus that scar.

"What are you staring at?" She asked with blank eyes as several seconds clicked by. "I've told you what happened to my eye. Shouldn't you be going back inside now? I'm sure Hisa is probably waiting for you," She said with a quickness. He figured she wasn't used to a male giving her attention without dark intentions.

"We're not all like that," Mori finally spoke up after just staring at her. She expected him to stop staring at her once she blatantly asked what he was staring at. But apparently he didn't get the memo. "Humans can do terrible things but it's usually a sign of fear. But we all don't do terrible things out of fear. That's like assuming all witches eat children just because some did."

Izzy stared back at him, nervously flicking a lock of hair over her scarred eye. Why was he staring at her like that? She wanted him to stop. She wanted him away from her. She just wanted to be left alone. But he just wouldn't leave. "That may be," She said slowly, visible eye darting around to look at anything but him. "I don't see why you're trying so hard to convince me of this. What do you want from me?" She asked again, her voice dropping down to almost a whisper.

Mori said nothing, opting to silently gaze at her. She stared back, slumping her shoulders once she realized he wasn't going to tell her what he wanted. Blowing at a strand of hair, she decided that human's were also too stubborn for their own good. Despite that, she didn't want to harm this particular human. Which was strange. He was powerful, she could tell, even if he wasn't a magical being. He was strong. He could snap her body in half if he had enough time. But she did not fear his strength.

"Did you really believe we were going to eat children?" Izzy suddenly asked. Both he and Kyoya seemed more level-headed than Tamaki. But that didn't mean they wouldn't be weary of the gossip around the town. It's not like any of the townspeople were going to vouch for them even though the four witches had never caused them any problems in the first place. _'Idiots,'_ she huffed internally.

Mori leaned back, supporting his large frame with the strength of his arms. Her eyes flickered, noticing the powerful muscles but said nothing more. "I've never met a witch who hasn't eaten children," He stated seriously. He noted in amusement when she pouted. "But I've also never met a witch who has."

And then finally, a smile.

* * *

TeeBeMe: Kay, yeah, so hello, hi, how ya doing? Yes, it's been a minute. I'm a horrible person, you don't have to tell me, lol. I've been having some trouble writing chapter 26 of We Own The Night, shit is getting real. It should be out sometime this week, I hope. I wrote this in order to get my creative juices flowing with Ouran again. Hope you guys like!


	9. Operation Stakeout

_In which Izzy wonders about the sanity of her gay best friend while stalking her cousin on a date_

* * *

"Izabera! Izaberaaaaa!"

Izzy sighed heavily as she stood alone in her kitchen. Perhaps if she just remained quiet...he would think she wasn't home. Maybe, just maybe, he would just leave her alone for the day like he previously promised.

"Izzy! Didn't you hear me calling you?!"

Orr...maybe not.

The brunette sighed for the second time before looking over her shoulder. Her best friend of eleven years scowled at her before storming into the kitchen. He stopped next to her and dramatically made a show of folding his arms across his chest. Izzy only pursed her lips at him. "Hello, Hikaru. Can I help you? Do you remember your promise about leaving me the hell alone for today?"

Hikaru only huffed and rolled his eyes. "What? Is your boyfriend here or something? That's why you don't want me around, Iz? Is that it?"

This time it was Izzy's turn to roll her eyes. "I'm sure we'd actually get some peace and quiet for once if I didn't have you around, Hikaru. No, Takashi isn't here. He's busy tonight," She explained shortly before turning back to the sandwich she had just finished preparing. She lifted it up to take a bite out it only to stop when Hikaru wildly slapped the sandwich out of her hand.

"Okay, what the hell, Hikaru? What the hell? What do you want? What, did we forget to feed your or something at a certain time? Is this one of those temper tantrums you tend to throw? Explain to me why I shouldn't slap the living hell out of you right now."

Hikaru only scoffed, placing his hand on his hip. "Do you know of Fufu's plans tonight, Iz? Do you know where your sweet, innocent, naive cousin is going tonight?"

Izzy only stared at him, still wondering why her sandwich had been slapped out of her hands. "She's going on a date with some guy," She stated tonelessly, squatting down to pick up the ruined pieces of her sandwich. She had her night all planned out, it was going to be a perfect night to relax. But nooo.

"Do you know with who?"

"What is this, twenty questions? I don't know, some guy named Kyohei or something."

Hikaru let out a dramatic wail as Izzy threw the ruined sandwich away. She turned back to him, lips twisted up in annoyance. "No, you amazon! She's going out with Ootori Kyoya!" He shouted loudly, throwing his hands up. Izzy only continued to stare at him, not quite understanding the big deal about any of this. Noticing her look, Hikaru threw the magazine he'd been clutching down on her table top. On the cover was a shot of a black haired man with black eyes to match and sleek glasses perched over his nose. Izzy glanced at it, eyebrow quirked. "I know you can read Japanese, Iz! This is _the _Ootori Kyoya," He pointed to the magazine.

"Is there any other Ootori Kyoya I should be aware of?"

"Oh for the love of...look! He's one of Japan's top bachelors! He's like one spot ahead of Mori!"

"But Takashi isn't a a bachelor..."

"Shut up! They don't know that! Wait, that's not the point. We're not talking about your boyfriend, you mutant! We're talking about the fact that you threw your innocent cousin to a wolf to be devoured!"

Izzy's eyebrows twitched. "Hell, maybe she needs to be devoured..."

Hikaru stared at her for a minute. "Whose been corrupting you, Izzy? Has Hisa been corrupting you? That perverted harpy has corrupted you, hasn't she? I told you about her, Iz," Hikaru scowled at the mention of Izzy's other best friend.

"You're only saying that because she called you a gay pixie that one time."

Hikaru's face turned red and he opened his mouth to retort only to snap it shut. He took a deep breath to calm himself. "We're not here to talk about that harpy with a bad dye job, okay? We're here to talk about Fufu going on a date with one of the most eligible bachelors in Japan."

"Yeah, okay, I get that and everything, I really do," Izzy opened her fridge, intent on making another sandwich. "But I don't see what that has to do with you slapping my sandwich out of my hand."

Hikaru grabbed her by her arm, jerking her away from the fridge. "Can't you think about anything else other than feeding your face?"

"I can think about punching _you _in the face."

"Does Mori like his women violent? I bet he doesn't."

Izzy shot him a poisonous look and closed her fridge. "Hikaru, where is this conversation going? Because I swear to God, if there isn't a plot line to this story, I'm going to hurt you."

"Of course it has a plot-line, you freak of nature! We're going on a stakeout!"

* * *

Izzy blankly swirled her glass of red wine. Honestly, she was surprised this restaurant even carried her famous family's wine. That had been the only reason they managed to get into the restaurant without any reservations made. "Why are we here, Hikaru?"

"Why else? To protect our Fufu's purity."

"She's twenty-three, I don't think she even _wants _her purity anymore."

Hikaru glared at her, muttering about her perverted and warped mind. His golden eyes swept the lowly-lit restaurant. Izzy didn't bother helping him look for her cousin and her date, she busily read through the menu, intent on eating. "Look, there she is...what are you doing?"

Izzy glanced over the menu and scowled at him. "What does it look like? I'm going to order something, I'm hungry. And you smacked my sandwich out of my hand like some deranged fairy," She reminded him with a bitter scowl.

Hikaru shot her a look and thought about kicking her underneath the table. Deciding that invoking her wrath, especially when she was hungry, probably wasn't a good idea, he didn't bother. "Is that all you think about? Food? It's going to go straight to your giant hips. And then what? Hm? Think Mori is gonna still be attracted to you?"

Izzy rolled her eyes. "At least someone's attracted to me, you flaming homo."

Hikaru gasped at her audacity. "Listen here, you tranny! I'm not a flaming homo and I find that offensive!"

"Oh yeah, like I don't find being called a tranny offensive?"

The two best friends glared at one another before Hikaru's eyes flickered. Izzy quirked an eyebrow at his sudden fixation on something across the room. Instead of asking him what he was staring at, she placed in her order and ordered a salad for Hikaru. He'd been grumbling about his diet when he chanced a look at the menu earlier. "Izzy, look," Hikaru nodded his head in the direction of her younger cousin sitting along with a dark haired male. Izzy placed her chin against her palm and eyed the couple. Now that she looked at Kyoya, she recognized him from some dinner party Mori's parents had thrown a month or two ago. She hadn't really spoken to him but she did remember his face.

"What about them, Hikaru? They're enjoying their date," She uttered blandly. Hikaru sighed heavily and ran a hand through his copper-colored hair. He straightened up and shook his head at her blase attitude.

"No, no, you gargoyle, look past them. Three tables over there's two guys dressed in all black staring at Fufu and Kyoya too. Do you see them?"

"Hikaru, you colorblind fool, that's not two guys. The brunette is a girl."

Her best friend bugged his eyes out at her. "I think I know a cute guy when I see one, Iz. That's a guy," He huffed with a frown. Izzy rolled her eyes and squinted at the lanky blond sitting with the tiny brunette. She pursed her lips and sipped some of her wine.

"That's a girl."

"You're blind, mutt, it's a guy."

"You know, there's a reason I prefer Kaoru over you sometimes."

"That is beyond mean."

Izzy was already cutting her baked chicken into pieces to devour. She hadn't eaten since noon that day and all that had been was a granola bar and some yogurt. Not that she was trying to be healthy or anything. Hani had stopped by her office and when he saw that she'd been planning on skipping lunch, he made her eat at least that much. Hikaru offered her a dirty look but said nothing, opting to eat his salad. Izzy was only a couple bites in when Hikaru made a strange noise in the back of his throat. "Why are they staring so hard at Fufu?"

"Who knows. Maybe the blond is attracted to her."

"Or maybe the brunet is."

"Too bad Fu isn't a lesbian."

"She doesn't have to be. That's not a girl."

The two continued to bicker when Izzy paused with a frown. "They're looking over here," She suddenly said. Hikaru glanced over only to see that the two were indeed staring back at them. He let out a small curse.

"Why are they staring at us?"

"Oh, I don't know, could it possibly be that it's because we were staring first while loudly bickering over the gender of a stranger?"

"You know, your sarcasm is your least attractive trait."

"Oh, shut up."

Hikaru was about to say more when he suddenly froze. Fumiko's date was looking over at the blond and the brunet with a tense shoulders. The blond suddenly said something and pointed to his and Izzy's table. Izzy hadn't been paying attention when she was suddenly yanked out of her seat and under the table. "What in the God's name are you doing!?" She demanded harshly as she pulled her arm away. Hikaru pressed his finger to her lips.

"Shut up and move that butt, we've been discovered!"

"Hikaru, you know how sometimes I threaten to kill you but I never go through with it?"

"Crawl and talk, Iz. Crawl and talk."

"I think I might actually murder you this time."

* * *

"Unlock the door, you're being childish."

Hikaru stood in the parking lot of the restaurant they'd just escaped from. Izzy was in her car, staring blankly out the passenger side window at Hikaru. She quirked an eyebrow and rolled the window down just a bit. "I'm sorry, what was that? Did you say something?"

He shot a mean glare at her through the window. "You are childish and I'm telling Mori that he's dating a woman-child."

"No, screw you, Hikaru. First you smack my sandwich out of my hand and then you make me wear all of this black in the middle of summertime to go on some stakeout to stalk my cousin and then you force me crawl out on my hands and knees without even letting me finish my damn chicken. I hate you right now. I really do. I should just leave you here."

Hikaru sagged against the car, frowning. "Can you think about anything else other than your appetite?" He groaned loudly. He heard the engine start up. "Oh my God, don't leave me here, She-Hulk! I'm sorry, I'll take you out to eat somewhere else, okay? My treat!"

He glanced back into the car to see her relax only to see her face twist up in confusion. Before she could say anything else, Hikaru was being jerked around and pinned against the car. The lanky blond from before towered over him by a good couple inches, glaring darkly at him.

"Wow, would you look at those eyes? What color is that? Amethyst? Are they real? Iz, come here and look at this guy's eyes!" Hikaru shouted, hoping his best friend would move her ass a bit quicker and get this blond off of him.

"Why were you staring at Haruhi?" the blond demanded with a slight accent. It sounded European like Izzy's accent but not quite the same. Her accent had more of a Hispanic flare to it. This one sounded a bit more posh. Maybe an English or French sort of thing.

"Uh." Hikaru trailed off. How exactly was he supposed to explain that they'd been staring because they were debating on this 'Haruhi's' gender? He heard the car door slowly open and Izzy climb out. She casually rounded the car and with her amazon strength paired with the martial arts lessons Mori had been forcing her to partake in, easily wrestled the blond off of Hikaru.

"Back off," She scowled dangerously. The two were about the same height and with the look Izzy was wearing, she was pretty scary. "He doesn't mean any harm, he's gay."

"What does that have to do with anything, Izzy? Honestly, why don't we just paint it on my forehead?"

"It has everything to do with this because this 'Haruhi' is a girl. That's a girl's name," Izzy rolled her eyes before turning to the blond. "Look, sorry for staring at your girlfriend but my friend here mistook her for a guy. Must have been the short haircut."

The tall blond blinked owlishly just as the small brunette in question appeared. She quirked an eyebrow and glanced at her companion. "I told you to leave these people alone, Tamaki," She sighed heavily as she readjusted her black shirt.

Tamaki only wheeled around, looking down at Haruhi. "They thought you were a boy!"

"Uh, excuse me, I did no such thing. I knew she was a girl."

Haruhi only blinked while placing a hand on her slim hip. "You thought I was a boy the first time we met, Tamaki. It's not a big deal, it happens all the time. That's no reason to try to intimidate them," She pointed out with a blank look. "I just wanted to enjoy my night in but you just had to drag me on this mission to stalk Kyoya and his date. She's not even crazy like the last one..."

Hikaru laughed and Izzy snorted. "Oh, trust me, she's certainly crazy..." She grumbled under breath at the thought of her scatterbrained cousin. Well, Fumiko wasn't all that crazy. But there was something wrong with her, Izzy figured.

"You know that woman?"

"She's my younger cousin. Hikaru here dragged me out to stalk her and her date. Wanted to make sure her 'purity' wouldn't be threatened. He meant well, I guess."

Hikaru huffed. "Of course I meant well! You know the type of guys Fufu tends to date! They're always missing a couple of screws or they're just jerks. And no offense to your friend Kyoya or anything but he has a horrible reputation and I'd rather wear bright yellow over letting Fu be another notch in his bedpost!"

Tamaki suddenly began to laugh. "So we're out here for the same reason, hm? We just wanted to protect our friends. That's pretty funny. Although I don't think Kyoya was very pleased when he caught us."

"Well, maybe if you'd learn how to shut up for more than five seconds, he wouldn't have caught us," Haruhi muttered out the side of her mouth. "I didn't even get to touch my tuna, Tamaki. You know how I feel about my tuna and you know I'm starving."

Izzy suddenly turned to glare at Hikaru. "At least he didn't force you to crawl out on your hands and knees like this pixie here."

"As a gay man, I find that very insulting. We've talked about this."

"Shut up, Tinkerbell."

Hikaru yanked on a lock of her hair. "I said I'd buy you dinner tonight. You're annoying when you're mad..." He trailed off with a pout. Izzy rolled her eyes like she was dealing with a child and not a twenty-two year old. She opened her mouth, maybe to invite the other couple along with them. She wasn't too sure about Tamaki but she liked this Haruhi girl. Haruhi reminded Izzy of her own self, just smaller with shorter hair. But they seemed pretty similar.

"Izzy!? Hikaru!? Oh my God, it is you two! What do you think you're doing!?"

Izzy and Hikaru glanced around Tamaki and Haruhi only to cringe at the sight of Fumiko standing at the entrance of the restaurant, face light up with red fury. Kyoya stood next to her, their arms interlocked. His eyes were narrowed in a more cold fury directed at his own best friends. Hikaru snatched the keys from Izzy's hand and clicked it, unlocking the doors. "Abort mission! Abort mission! We've been discovered! Everyone in the car!" He flung the keys back to Izzy before the four of them scrambled into her car.

They took off into the night only to stop at McDonalds.

Good enough.

* * *

TeeBeMe: This idea has been rattling around my head for awhile, I just kept hearing Izzy call Hikaru a pixie or something and thought it was funny. Besides, I love gay people so why not make one of them gay, lol. Anyways, humanentity8: don't worry, I'm totally working on a dance oneshot! But I hope you guys like this for now as you patiently wait for me to update We Own The Night!


	10. Mario Kart

_They learn the hard way that there are no friendships in Mario Kart. _

* * *

It's been raining for days. Which, under normal circumstances, would have been fine but it just so happened that the former Host Club _(plus Izzy and Fu)_ were vacationing in London and hadn't really left their suite. And as much as they had grown to love one another over the past years since High School, they were becoming antsy.

"Oh," Izzy drew the curtains back, pursing her lips as she watched the unforgivable downpour. "Would you look at that," She peeked over her shoulder at Haruhi, Fumiko and Hikaru. "It's raining," She pointed out with a dry wit about her. "Again."

"I told you guys we should have just gone to Puerto Rico..." Fumiko mumbled into her palm, smiling innocently when Izzy shot her a glare.

"Do any of you speak Spanish?"

"Of course not but don't you?"

"Italian and Spanish are two different languages, damn it!"

Fumiko and Hikaru both shared mischievousness laughs, completely amused with Izzy's irritation. Haruhi rolled her eyes at the two in slight disbelief that they were twenty-two and twenty-three year olds. Some things never changed. "We could still go out, you know," She suggested with a casual shrug. Hikaru frowned, twisting his face up at the thought of going out in the rain.

"Haruhi, it's _raining_."

"And the ocean is blue. So what? We could actually go out but you're all still a bunch of spoiled brats..."

"Hey! Don't lump me in with these morons. I just don't want to go out because the rain will completely destroy my hair. Are you going to brush all the frizz and knots out of it? What, do you think I just roll out of bed and my hair is just normal? No, this—this _mane _has a mind of its' own and I will not upset it by running around in the rain watching the trio of morons jump in puddles."

Haruhi seemed unaffected by Izzy's ranting but she did look towards Fumiko and Hikaru. They seemed rightfully disturbed by Izzy's rant and she quietly nodded, pleased that she wasn't the only one. "Speaking of morons," Haruhi turned back to Hikaru. "Where is Tamaki?" She asked, big eyes full of questions. She hadn't seem the loud blond since they all woke up hours ago and wondered where he could have gone.

Hikaru turned down his nose at her. "He's_ your_ husband, Haruhi, how should I know?"

"Because stupidity usually travels in groups."

Haruhi snorted at Izzy's dry input, dropping her head in a vain attempt to hide her amusement. Fumiko giggled into her palm, blushing sheepishly when Hikaru glared at her. He let out a small whine and shoved at Fumiko's shoulder, muttering that she was supposed to be the nice one. "Ah, I think he went out with Mori-senpai and Kaoru," Fumiko added helpfully after controlling her giggles. "Hani-chan is still asleep and so is Kyoya-kun. You know how they are when it comes to sleeping in. And all this dreary weather makes them even more sleepy as it is," Fumiko pouted, looking towards the room she and her own husband were using.

"Hani is only sleeping so much because Reiko didn't come with us."

"Sometimes I still can't believe Hani-senpai married such a weird woman."

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "That's the pot calling the kettle black..."

Izzy nodded, frowning. "Half the time I prefer her antics over yours, Hikaru."

Hikaru gaped at the two brunettes, clearly offended. "How are you both even married?" He hissed at them, pouting. "You're so damn mean. I can only imagine you two being Mothers. I'll pray for those kids," He huffed and puffed, whining when Izzy threw a book at him. It was only an hour later when the door slammed open, rattling the entire suite. The four gathered in the living area stiffened considerably before looking towards the rooms that Kyoya and Hani were still occupying. When no signs of two rage monsters stirred, they slumped.

"Are you trying to get us killed?" Izzy hissed and spat, throwing a glare over the back of the couch at the front door. Tamaki only grinned as he waltzed in, Kaoru and Mori following behind. "You freakin' tic," She finished with a snarl, throwing a book at his head.

It bounced off of his blond head loudly and Tamaki went down, whining and clutching at his head. Mori and Kaoru only offered the fallen blond a quick glance before either stepping over or around him. "Why do you keep throwing books?" Hikaru rubbed his own bruised head, silently sympathizing with Tamaki over the pain. Of course, she wasn't wrong for attacking Tamaki, he was just curious by her sudden mistreatment of books.

"The throw pillows are too soft."

"Congratulations, Mori-senpai, you married a demon."

"He knows exactly what he got himself into."

"It's true, I do."

It was Fumiko who got up to check on Tamaki. She crouched down by the wiry blond, patting him as everyone, _including his own wife_—_why was she so mean_, chose to ignore his whines. "Oh, Tamaki," She shook her head before noticing the damp bag he'd been carrying. "What's this?" She puckered lips and turned away from the blond, effectively ignoring him just like the rest.

Tamaki let out a particular whine that started as a low rumble but eventually turned into a loud mournful moan of despair. Still, no one looked at him and Fumiko only busied herself with digging through his bag. She pulled out a big blue box, frowning in confusion before realization dawn on her. "Oh! I know what this is!" She beamed, proud of herself. "This is a Wii U! You bought a Wii U, Tamaki?" Fumiko turned her blackberry eyes on the blonde, forgetting that he was in pain from the lump forming on his head. This gained the attention of Hikaru, Haruhi and Izzy.

"A what?" Hikaru drawled, not amused at all.

"You don't know what a Wii U is?" Fumiko sprang up, wildly clutching at the bulky box. It almost slipped out of her hands but Mori leaned down, catching it with ease. Fumiko blanched and quietly thanked her cousin in law. The last thing they needed was for her to drop a heavy box directly on Tamaki's face. The dramatic blond would never shut up and Haruhi would be forced to commit murder. A murder they would all keep secret because who really cared if she murdered her annoying husband?

"Should I know what it is? It sounds like a disease."

Fumiko rolled her eyes at Hikaru's behavior. "No, silly!" She shouted, not able to bring herself to calling anyone stupid. She also stealthily ignored Izzy's mumblings that they were all diseases to her. "It's a popular gaming system by Nintendo. How can you not know about it? It's made in Japan!" Fumiko exclaimed, holding the box up to solidify her words.

"Yeah, so's everything in the world."

"I thought everything was made in China."

"That's a stereotype."

"Shut up, Haruhi."

The only one who didn't seem interested or excited by the new game system was Izzy. In fact, she was glaring at the boxed system with a look of clear disdain across her face. Mori took notice of her expression immediately and lightly shoved at her shoulder. "Something wrong?" He asked, used to her dark looks after all these years.

She tore her eyes away from the box long enough to look at him with a haunted look in her eyes. "I'm not playing that thing," She said after a long pause. Her voice rang over all of their excitement, causing a slight lull to the conversation. Mori tilted his head to the side, wondering what she had against the video game system. Sure, they might just be a little too old to spend their day playing video games but it could turn out to be a lot of fun.

"Why?"

The haunted look in her eyes leaked out and took over her face as she drifted off internally. Then she shot Tamaki a dirty look because she knew this was his bright idea. "I have three older brothers, okay? Not one. Three. And a bunch of older male cousins. What do you think we did when they all came to visit? They forced me to play video games with them and...and...I refuse to play, alright?"

The room stared at her with questions drenched in their eyes. Just what went on in her childhood that she refused to play video games? Slightly disturbed, Mori placed his arms around Izzy and hugged her to his chest, patting her head as she relieved the horrors of her childhood. Having recovered from her abuse, Tamaki snatched the box away from Fumiko to rip it open. He pulled the gaming system out of the box, nearly dropping the game-pad in his haste. He placed it in front of their television and waited for a few minutes. Hikaru quirked an eyebrow. "Nothing is happening."

"You have to hook everything up, morons," Haruhi rolled her eyes and shoved them all aside to hook all the wires up to the appropriate outlets. It wasn't long before the screen game to life with the Nintendo logo. Tamaki pumped his fists in the air, loudly cheering that his wife was clearly the smartest. He only stopped when Izzy violently smacked him with a controller this time, berating him about his obnoxious yelling that was sure to wake Hani and Kyoya.

They went through an assortment of games _(most of them they were all terrible at)_ before finally settling on Mario Kart. Izzy's eyes seem to widen as the game loaded and she sank down next to Mori, slowly reaching for a controller. If anyone noticed her odd behavior, they chose not to comment on it, instead fighting and bickering over characters.

"There's so many boards to pick..." Fumiko mumbled once everyone safely picked their characters. There was some debate as to which racetrack they should pick before Izzy's eyes seemingly light up. She smiled sweetly and that should have been everyone's warning. Whenever Izzy smiled so sweetly, disaster was sure to follow to her amusement and their horror.

"Pick Rainbow Road."

Drawn in by the colorful track, Tamaki ignorantly heeded her suggestion. 2.5 seconds after the race started, they all realized. Rainbow Road was the track from Hell. Apparently Mario Kart was a game played frequently during her childhood and she had grown used to Rainbow Road. She still did just as horrible as the rest of them but she expected that. Her makeshift family did not know what to expect.

"You're a monster, Izzy, a monster! Why would you even suggest something like this?"

"Don't fall, don't fall, don't fa—_DAMN IT_!"

"Who even came up with this track? How twisted do you have to be to come up with this?"

"Mori-senpai, please don't break the controller..."

"Does it ever end? My hands are cramping, for God's sake, _they're cramping_."

"Jesus Christ!"

"This is Hell. This is actual Hell. I'm in Hell right now."

"Oh my God, I'm in first place. I don't know how but—_what's that noise_?"

"The sound of betrayal."

"That's blue turtle-shell, Fufu."

"Who...who used it? Oh my God, _Izzy_, how could you!?"

"There are no friendships in Mario Kart."

And that is how a bunch of twenty-something year olds learned on a cold rainy day to never trust Izzy whenever it came to her making suggestions about anything. That was also the last time any of them even looked at Mario Kart for years. And not once did they ever talk about that cold rainy day in fear of having a mental breakdown.

* * *

TeeBeMe: Public Service Announcement: Mario Kart will bring out the worst of us. And no, friendships really don't matter. May the odds be forever in your favor.


End file.
